Smart Pantry · Guides
Is cheese OK after the best before date?
Dates, mould, storing and freezing: a plain UK guide to hard and soft cheese.
The short answer
Best before: most cheese has one. It's about quality, not safety, so cheese is usually fine after the date. Look, smell and taste to decide.
Use-by: some soft cheeses have one. Don't eat it after that date.
Mould: the Food Standards Agency says not to eat mouldy food, and cutting the mould off isn't guaranteed to make it safe.
Check which date your cheese has
Cheese usually carries a best before date. That date is about quality: after it, the cheese is usually still safe to eat, but it may not be at its best. Use your senses here. Look at it, smell it, and taste a little.
Some soft cheeses have a use-by date instead. A use-by date is about safety, and eating food after it could make you ill. Don't rely on a sniff test for these: you can't smell the bacteria that cause food poisoning. Also check the label for how long the cheese lasts once opened.
What about mould on cheese?
The Food Standards Agency says food that contains mould should not be eaten. Cutting off the mould and a good amount around it might remove hidden toxins, but there's no guarantee it removes them all.
Take extra care if you're feeding children, or if you're pregnant, aged 65 or over, or have a weakened immune system. If you're pregnant, the NHS has a list of cheeses to avoid.
How to store cheese
- Hard cheese such as Cheddar, Red Leicester and Lancashire: in an airtight container in the fridge. Blue cheese can be wrapped in foil.
- Soft cheese such as Brie, Camembert and feta: well wrapped, in an airtight container in the fridge.
- Cream cheese and ricotta: in their own tub, sealed shut, in the fridge.
Your fridge should be at 5°C or below. Follow the storage advice on the label, because cheese that isn't stored properly can lose quality before its date.
Can you freeze cheese?
Hard cheese: yes, for up to two months.
- Grate it first. Bought a big block on offer? Grate it and freeze it in a sealed bag or container. It's handy for cheese on toast, beans or an omelette.
- Label it with what it is and the date you froze it.
- Defrost it safely. Don't leave it out at room temperature. Ideally, use the microwave's defrost setting just before you need it. Use defrosted food within 24 hours.
Soft cheese: not recommended. Freezing is likely to make it watery. Instead, cook it into a pasta sauce and freeze the sauce.
Ways to use up cheese
- Grate dry, hard cheese into mash, or over pasta or chilli.
- Keep the hard end and rind of cheese like parmesan. Drop it into a soup or sauce for flavour, then take it out.
- Stir leftover cream cheese into a frittata, an omelette or mashed potato.
Why cheese gets binned anyway
A big pack gets opened and isn't finished before it dries out or goes mouldy. Buying a pack size you'll get through, and freezing some hard cheese if you won't, helps stop that.
Smart Pantry keeps track of the cheese in your fridge
Snap your supermarket receipt and your cheese goes in with a date, along with the rest of the shop. Your kitchen is sorted by what needs eating first, and one reminder at 8am tells you when something is close, while there's still time to grate and freeze it.
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More guides: Is milk OK after the date? · Is tinned food OK after the date? · Best before vs use-by · Can you eat brown bananas? · How long do potatoes last? · How long does bread last? · How long does cooked rice last? · Eggs after the best before date
Sources: GOV.UK, Understanding food labelling; Food Standards Agency, Home food fact checker (mould and sniff test); WRAP Love Food Hate Waste, Cheese (Hard) and Cheese (Soft); NHS, Foods to avoid in pregnancy. If you're unsure whether food is safe, don't eat it.