KIERAN FROM CRUMLIN contacted us to give out about a supermarket in his area. He says the shop has “for at least a week been selling pink garlic bulbs that do not have any best before date on them”.

He says this might not bother him save for the fact that he bought some recently “only to discover that most of the cloves are already turning brown”.

He has had “numerous other experiences of taking home so-called fresh vegetables from this supermarket only to discover that they are partially spoilt already”.

He describes that as “a reprehensible practice” and suggests that the store “gets away with it because people just haven’t the time to go back and complain. Is this practice illegal? It’s certainly immoral?”

Well, the short answer is it is not illegal. A best before date is not needed on fresh fruit or vegetables. The Food Safety Authority says such labelling is not needed because consumers should be able to see whether the produce is fresh before they buy it.

They will also be able to tell if the product is good or bad as it deteriorates visibly.