We usually buy brioche buns for our burgers and our observations over a few months at Colesworth are that Woolies products on the shelf usually have a best before or use by date from just a few days to 2 weeks away. Coles products are often still defrosting on the display shelf (fresh from the freezer?).
We saw some well priced buns at Aldi and liked them better than either premium brand at Woolies. Last week we bought another packet and noticed the best by date is 31 Aug, 6 weeks after the purchase date they are labelled as having no preservatives.
From a random source that seems to reflect norms.
and a Choice commentary (2017)
Are buns and bread that different or is a 6 weeks shelf life a tribute to food science and adding (preservative) gases into the packaging? Regardless, it is a curious difference between major suppliers product longevity.
Yes and no. I suspect that it will be a combination of preservatives and modified atmosphere packaging (see below).
Called modified atmosphere packaging. While I haven’t seen the brioche breads from all the supermarkets, Aldi and some other supermarkets are known to use modified atmospheres within packaging to prolong self life.
Bread which is 6 weeks old isn’t what one would class as fresh…just possibly has an extended life.
As it appears that they are manufactured in France, I suspect that 6 weeks would be highly conservative. The bread could be many months old since sea freight from France to Australia takes 40-50 days. I wonder if the bread is frozen in transit and then thawed to be sold in the supermarkets… The best before/use by dates could be placed on the package on thawing. If this is the case, I hope that they are not sold as fresh…and it would be a product I think I would avoid.
Are you suggesting it will keep fresh even longer than six weeks? Great product if it does.
Some products have fine print that suggest best consumed within one-two days of opening.
Tend to agree, manufactured and baked in France. Packaged and sea freight to Aust. Frozen or not, it might not be what I would call fresh bread. But then Woolies and Coles have set the gold standard in redefining what ‘fresh’ means.
Does Woolies as the ‘Fresh Food People’, literally propose every product they sell including long life milk and canned beans must be fresh simply by virtue of being in their store?
Can consumers ever take ‘fresh’ back or do we need to create a new word that is incorruptible in it’s meaning?
I would say Coles has the gong for this one over Woollies…
It would be interesting if someone buys the brioche buns/bread from any of the supermarkets (inc. smaller ones such as IGA etc), if they are sold as ‘fresh’ when they are manufactured and shipped from France.
I personally don’t enjoy brioche breads as I find them sweet and a bit like a fruit bun, but without the fruit.
The products at Colesworths are indeed too sweet and far too sweet, brand dependent. The Aldi product has only the barest sweetness, hence why we preferred it.
The best before/use by dates could be placed on the package on thawing. If this is the case, I hope that they are not sold as fresh…and it would be a product I think I would avoid.