EHO stories of bad labelling
If you’ve ever worked in environmental health, you’ll know that bad labelling is a common and frustrating issue found during food hygiene inspections.
Here are some examples of bad labelling in action, and what they mean for your team, your EHO visit, and your customers.
The container with three labels
One container. Three labels. One says “chicken curry,” one says “veg curry,” and another says “fish curry,” each with a different use-by date! During the inspection, the EHO holds it up and asks, “What is this?” No one is sure. The team explains that the labels won’t peel off properly, so new ones are just added on top. The result is that it’s unclear what the food is, when it was opened, or whether it’s still safe to use.
This isn’t an isolated incident. EHOs see containers like this regularly. It signals that the kitchen is not in control of its labelling, storage, or stock rotation.
Fish roe not labelled after opening
A tub of fish roe was found in a fridge with no label. According to the manufacturer’s instructions, it must be used within three days of opening. No one could confirm when it had been opened. This is just one example, but it’s typical of what EHOs find. Often it’s not just one tub, but several, across multiple fridges. The risk is not just food waste, but serving something that may no longer be safe to eat.
Prepared foods past their use-by dates
In larger operations, chillers are often packed with containers of prepped food. Without a reliable labelling system, it’s easy for out of date items to be missed. EHOs regularly find tubs pushed to the back with no label, or labels that show the food is clearly out of date.
Defrosted foods not labelled
For foods that have been defrosted, it is good practice to clearly label them with the date of defrosting and a use-by date. The Food Standards Agency advises that most defrosted foods should be used within 24 hours of defrosting*. Yet many businesses forget to label defrosted foods. As such, no one knows how long something has been defrosted, which makes it impossible to manage safely.
Partially completed labels
It’s common to see labels that are only half filled in. For example, a prep date is written but there’s no use-by, or the use-by is there but the name of the food is missing. Sometimes the label is present, but it’s not clear whether it belongs to the current contents. These inconsistencies make it difficult for food handlers to work safely and for EHOs to feel confident in your system.
Unlabelled sauces
EHOs often find bottles or open tubs of sauces left unlabelled, especially products like ketchup, mayonnaise, or BBQ sauce. Most of these products say on the packaging, “once opened, use within X days.” But once decanted or when the bottle is unlabelled, that information is lost. If no one knows how long the sauce has been open, it could be served past the safe date without anyone realising.
The mystery sauce
A tub in the fridge is simply labelled “sauce.” No description, no date, no allergen info. When asked, the chef says it’s “probably the dairy-free version,” but isn’t sure because someone else made it. This is a serious allergen risk. Even well-intentioned food handlers can make unsafe decisions if the label isn’t clear.
The wrong dish or wrong information given to a customer with a food allergy
Imagine this. A customer informs the team that they have a nut allergy. A dish is served with the “safe” sauce, but due to poor labelling, the team used the wrong one. Or a front-of-house staff member gives incorrect allergen information based on being unable to decipher the correct information from a hand written label. In a busy service, it only takes one unlabelled container for the wrong thing to be served. The consequences can be serious.
Out-of-date food served to a customer
Picture a container with no label, sitting at the back of a fridge. It’s used in a dish without anyone checking how long it has been there. The customer later reports feeling unwell. There is no way to confirm if it was the food, but when the EHO visits, they find multiple unlabelled items and no stock rotation system in place.
The old tape trick
Masking tape, scraps of paper, labels stuck on top of each other, EHOs still see it. These handwritten notes smudge, fall off, or get reused. One recent inspection found two tubs of rice, one labelled “Monday” and one labelled “Friday,” but no one knew which was which. Both were thrown out. This isn’t just poor practice, it’s a waste of food.
Guesswork during inspections
The biggest issue with poor labelling is what happens when the EHO starts asking questions. If the team cannot confidently explain what something is, when it was made, or the use by date, it reflects poor training and lack of supervision.
Summary
Bad labelling creates confusion, undermines safety, and damages confidence. It leads to food waste, poor allergen control, and lower hygiene ratings. In some cases, it puts customers at serious risk.
References:
https://www.food.gov.uk/safety-hygiene/how-to-chill-freeze-and-defrost-food-safely
