What is an Expiry Date?

Videojet has a wide range of expiry date printers to print expiry dates on your products and packaging, with options including continuous inkjet and laser printers, labellers and many more. Also known as the “use by” date, this is the deadline after which the health and quality of a product (such as perishable foodstuffs) expires. Products should not be sold after this date, as ingestion or consumption may be unsafe.

As stipulated in the UK Food Labelling Regulations 1996, it is compulsory to apply an expiry date on the labels of pre-packed food and non-alcoholic beverages, with the exception of those in tins or packaged in high vacuum blister packs.

The expiry date must be coded because all food is included in the regulations of the Food Standards Agency (FSA) as a measure of health security. Consumers are therefore recommended to check the expiry date before purchasing any food at the supermarket or consuming purchased food.

Expiry Date Printers or Coders

The machines that print the expiry or “use by” date on a product are commonly known as expiry date printers (or coders), and Videojet is equipped with a wide range of technologies to provide the expiry date printer best suited to your production needs.

Related Articles