DON’T MISS
IamExpat FairIamExpat Job BoardIamExpat Webinars
Newsletters
EXPAT INFO
CAREER
HOUSING
EDUCATION
LIFESTYLE
EXPAT SERVICES
NEWS & ARTICLES
Home
Expat Info
Dutch news & articles
An end to unnecessary food waste?
Never miss a thing!Sign up for our weekly newsletters with important news stories, expat events and special offers.
Keep me updated with exclusive offers from partner companies
By signing up, you agree that we may process your information in accordance with our privacy policy

An end to unnecessary food waste?

Never miss a thing!Sign up for our weekly newsletters with important news stories, expat events and special offers.
Keep me updated with exclusive offers from partner companies
By signing up, you agree that we may process your information in accordance with our privacy policy
or
follow us for regular updates:



Related Stories

Most enterprising Dutch universities announcedMost enterprising Dutch universities announced
Dutch are leading more sober lives, research showsDutch are leading more sober lives, research shows
Dutch income tax system should be simplified, report statesDutch income tax system should be simplified, report states
Amsterdam to remain a competitive Hot Spot until 2025Amsterdam to remain a competitive Hot Spot until 2025
Special court for disputes between neighbours in the NetherlandsSpecial court for disputes between neighbours in the Netherlands
Preparation for winter cycling in the Netherlands beginsPreparation for winter cycling in the Netherlands begins
Maastricht University 7th best young university in the worldMaastricht University 7th best young university in the world
Student rooms in Amsterdam are most expensive in the NetherlandsStudent rooms in Amsterdam are most expensive in the Netherlands
For expats of all colours, shapes and sizes

Explore
Expat infoCareerHousingEducationLifestyleExpat servicesNews & articles
About us
IamExpat MediaAdvertisePost a jobContact usSitemap
More IamExpat
IamExpat Job BoardIamExpat HousingIamExpat FairsWebinarsNewsletters
Privacy
Terms of usePrivacy policyCookiesAvoiding scams

Never miss a thing!Sign up for expat events, news & offers, delivered once a week.
Keep me updated with exclusive offers from partner companies
By signing up, you agree that we may process your information in accordance with our privacy policy


© 2025 IamExpat Media B.V.
© 2025 IamExpat Media B.V.
Mar 18, 2013
Mark McDaid
Mark hails from the Emerald Isle but has been living in the land of cheese and deep-fried-indiscriminate-meat since February 2009. He can often be found trying to read through a hand shaking vociferously from coffee-intake or attempting to act in one of Amsterdam's English-language theater groups. Read more

"Best Before" dates could become a thing of the past thanks to a new plastic sensor circuit developed by researchers at the Eindhoven University of Technology, in conjunction with the Universitá di Catania, CEA-Liten and STMicroelectronics.

Waste

The Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations has estimated that consumers and businesses in developed countries throw away around 100 kilograms of food per person, mainly thanks to the conservative estimates of "Best Before" dates on food products.

The difficultly in estimating how long food will stay usable for and producers' concerns about supplying their customers with spoiled food has resulted in these cautious estimates.

Sensor circuits

However, it is already possible thanks to the use of sensor circuits to check the freshness of any product by monitoring, for example, the acidity of it. Using your mobile phone or even your fridge to scan a circuit in the packaging can give you a much more accurate picture of your food's use-by date.

The problem, however, lay in the price of production for these sensor circuits, costing around 10 cents per chip which, if placed into a product costing one euro, was too expensive to be viable.

Plastic

Now, thanks in part to the work of the Eindhoven-based researchers, there are circuits being developed in plastic which have the advantage of being much cheaper as well as being able to be fitted onto the ubiquitous plastic packaging.

The expectation is that it will take five years for these products to make it onto supermarket shelves, but there is much potential for using these sensors in many other industries, including the pharmaceuticals industry, that it will not be a moment too soon.

Source: Eindhoven University of Technology

By Mark McDaid