No Bananas sells berries and other products. In June, they gave a customer strawberry jam as a gift.
The seller said the jam was a gift. However, the jar did not show the date. A large sticker covered it. When the sticker was removed, it turned out that the jam's "best before" date was in January 2026. The jam was given to the customer in June, almost five months later.
The owner of No Bananas wrote that jam sales were not going well. They made 40,000 jars but sold few. Now they are giving the jam at a discount or for free.
An official stated that the date must be visible. Even if the food is free, the date should not be hidden. This is against the law.
If the food's "best before" date has passed, it can be given away. However, it must be clearly visible. If the date is "use by," it cannot be distributed.
No Bananas' jam jar has a "best before" date. Therefore, giving it away for free is not prohibited. However, the date must not be concealed. If this is done, a fine can be issued.
A No Bananas employee said the sticker was not intended to hide the date. They are reviewing the process to ensure it does not happen again.
They are still distributing jam with dates valid until the end of the year. After that, they will pass the jam on.