The best before date for eggs is already up to 28 days but the grocery stores have only been allowed to sell them for 21 days after laying.
Now that changes. The new rules, which came into force on Thursday, give the shops the opportunity to sell the eggs during the entire 28-day period. The hope is that the extra week will reduce wastage.
“These are EU rules that Sweden and the Swedish Food Agency have long worked to change. It makes a big difference when stores no longer have to throw away eggs that have a whole week left until the best-before date,” says Karin Fritz, adviser at the Swedish Food Agency, in a press release.
Eggs that are stored cold are also edible long after the best-before date has passed, points out the Swedish Food Agency. The best before date is set on the basis that the egg packaging is stored at room temperature. Raw eggs kept in the refrigerator at around 4 degrees can last for several more weeks.