But, the department is to stop short of passing new legislation in this area.
By law pre-packed food must show a best before date, even though many foods are still safe to eat after that date. This is very different from the use by date that shows when food is no longer safe and should be thrown away. The government claims that being clear on the difference between the two is crucial.
According to the government-funded recycling body, the Waste & Resources Action Programme (WRAP), at least 60% (5.3 million tonnes) of the 8.3 million tonnes of UK household food and drink waste produced annually is avoidable the equivalent of 680 per household.
And, WRAP research has identified confusion over date labelling as one of the major causes for this.
The organisation first researched the issue in detail in early 2009 (see letsrecycle.com story) and it was something which former environment secretary Hilary Benn was also keen to tackle.
A Defra spokeswoman said: Were working with industry on guidance to clear up some of the confusion around date labels. This is not new legislation.
Commenting on the issue, environment secretary Caroline Spelman said: I am dismayed so much food goes to waste and if the date labels are part of the problem its one thing we should be able to improve.
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