I only went to Marks and Spencer for some socks now that winter is around the corner and I have packed away my flip flops and sandals. I wasn’t planning on buying any food but I saw a rack full of heavily discounted food and when I looked at it I couldn’t believe it was so cheap – 5rmb for everything (60p).
I quickly grabbed all the Kashmiri Rogan Josh kits and a jar of Red Thai sauce and tins of new potatoes (great in the cupboard for emergency meals!).
It was only because I was on a Mobike without a basket that I didn’t buy more. And the reason for all this discounting was that at the end of the month (two days away) the products are deemed to be somehow degraded. I ask anyone sane how on earth how pickled onions and preserved roasted peppers can ever go off!
And canned new potatoes – canned food lasts for centuries doesn’t it? The bottle of fizzy alcohol was a 
no-brainer. If only I had been on my own bike and not on my way to the book shop, I would have bought a lot more.
Nevertheless it’s always nice to net a bargain and I have made a mental note to go to M&S a few days before the end of November too so I can pick up a few other preserves which someone really stupid in an office somewhere thinks will be inedible as soon as the calendar clicks over to the following month.
It was notable that one of my Chinese friends who saw this asked me what a sell-by date was – she had no idea. That says it all – they have fresh fruit and veg from the market and buy very little processed food on cans and jars. That’s a great idea in principle but I do love a but of convenience!