ROCK OF AGES
I may be mistaken but when I think back to my youth I cannot remember any foods showing the words 'Sell by...,’ ‘Use by....' 'Display by....,' ‘Best before....' or ‘Use within ... days of opening'. What a difference to what we see these days. Public Health is rightly so important now, hence all these 'Sell by....' etc dates. When I was young everything was used whether it was fresh or 'not so fresh.' Very little was thrown out.
Very little food was wasted even though we did not have refrigerators or deep freezers. Many will remember that during the second world war there were barrels situated in neighbourhoods in which it was expected you put any waste food for the pigs. If my memory serves me right I don't think the pigs got much from where I lived!
Generally everything that was classed as 'left-overs' was made into soup for the next day. or sometimes it lasted for a number of days.
As many people will know food was rationed during the war and much of it had to be imported. It was considered a sin if food was wasted, and we were constantly reminded that sailors risked their lives in order that we had food on our table.
As a youngster it was difficult for me to imagine being able to go into a shop and buy anything I fancied, mainly because I hadn't very much money in my pocket. I tried to imagine a shop full of sweets... but it appeared as just a dream! The first banana I ever saw was black and shriveled, and for a long time I thought all bananas were like that.. I was not impressed! I believe that that particular banana had been dehydrated and preserved, but it certainly looked well past its sell by date, but I did not think that at the time!!
I was prompted to write this short article from something I read in a newspaper recently which quoted from a label seen on a container: -
'This rock salt is over 200 million years old, formed through ancient geological processes in the German mountain ranges.
BEST BEFORE 04. 2003.'
I am delighted they managed to recover it just in time!
God bless you, and have a nice day
Ray Hume