FIFO in food safety stands for first in, first out. It is a food management system designed to ensure that your food products are fresh and safe to use. But should you be using FIFO in your food business?

What is FIFO?

FIFO, or first in, first out, is a way to manage your stock usage. It works by using the food that you have had longest (first in) before any other food (first out). It requires placing newer deliveries behind older ones, pushing them forward. By ensuring that older food doesn’t get forgotten about and become rotten or mouldy, it limits waste. Perhaps it may be the method that you use at home without even realising it.

Does FIFO work in food safety?

FIFO is not a bad food management system in principle. It shows that you are considering how long a food has been in your inventory, and it goes some way to reducing food waste. However, within a professional environment, it has major flaws for food safety. The system relies entirely on human consistency. It needs perfect labelling and perfect execution every single time. This is incredibly hard to maintain in a busy environment. Simple mistakes can happen frequently. Someone might place a new item at the front for convenience. An old item can get pushed to the back and forgotten. These small errors lead to increased waste. More seriously, they can cause foodborne illness.

There are a handful of limited instances where FIFO can work adequately. This is typically for very fresh, short-life foods that lack any best-before date. Think, for example, of loose, unpackaged bakery items like daily bread. They are delivered and sold on the same day. This is very much the exception, though, not the rule.

For the vast majority of foods, FIFO is not reliable enough on its own. Relying solely on staff to remember what came in first is an unnecessary risk. It is simply not a recommended primary system for ensuring food safety.

What are my alternatives to FIFO for food safety?

You must use a proper, date-based system. This is the best and safest alternative. It is the UK food safety standard for a very good reason. Properly dated packaging is a much safer and more accurate guide. Best-before and, crucially, use-by dates are there for your protection. They provide a clear, scientific measure of safety. Best-before dates denote quality. Food beyond its best-before date may still be safe to eat, but it may taste, look, or smell worse. Use-by dates, on the other hand, are about food safety. You must not eat or serve food that has gone beyond its use-by date, as it is considered unsafe. 

Alongside the labels on pre-packaged food, it is important to use your own labelling system. Foods which have been opened should be labelled to ensure that all your staff know when it was opened and when they should be used by. This is particularly important for ingredients which are not used all at once.

Beyond labels, you and your staff should use your senses to ensure your food is safe to eat. Food may go off even before its best-before or use-by date. As a result, it is important to check for signs of mould or bacteria. Is there visible mould on the product? Does the product smell unusual, particularly excessively sour? If the answer to either of these questions is yes, you should throw it away. Ultimately, your customers’ safety is more important than some food waste.

Finally, if possible, your business should set up a digital inventory of stock. This will help your business from a food safety perspective, as you can keep track of which items need to be used and by when. There are also benefits beyond food safety. With a digital inventory, it will be easier to track which products sell the most and plan your business strategy accordingly.

So what's next?

In summary, FIFO in food safety is a basic product organisation system. It can serve as a helpful secondary check. But it should never be your primary food safety method. Always trust the use-by dates above all else. Label everything you can clearly. This disciplined approach is the safest way to protect yourself, your staff, and your customers. To help increase your food safety skills, check out our certified food hygiene training for both you and your staff.

Who is responsible for enforcing food hygiene legislation?

What is pink mould and how do I prevent it in my business?

What is a critical control point in food safety?