Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) says we in Britain throw away 6.7million tonnes of food every year. The Environment Minister, Hilary Benn, says we might be able to save some of this wasted food by stopping the practice of putting unnecessary "display by" and "sell by" dates on food packaging.

Hurrah for Mr. Benn's common sense. All these dates have at least some element of arbitrariness. We all know perfectly well that most sandwiches are perfectly safe to eat the day after they're meant to be consumed - and they're probably the most vulnerable date-labelled item on the shelves of the supermarket or local shop. Of course there has to be some element of date-control to stop unscrupulous retailers feeding us salmonella with our smoked salmon sandwiches, but there is plenty of wiggle-room for a more sensible system.

And we can all think of some food items where the date is not so relevant to the goodness of the food - such as cheese, fruit and veg, and things such as tins of sardines (where age may even be desirable - look at this reference to "vintage sardines" in the Washington Post.

So next time you open the fridge and see a pot of cream or whatever that is past its "sell-by" date, don't throw it out until you have used your eyes, nose, taste buds and good old common sense to check whether it is still wholesome. It's better for the environment as well as for your purse.