Asda has been charged over £400,000 after two of its Cornwall stores were caught selling out-of-date food.

An inquiry by Cornwall Council’s Trading Standards Team found that Asda had 58 expired products on shelves at its Penryn branch on 30 October 2023, reported Cornwall Live.

A follow-up inspection on 1 November 2023 uncovered an additional four products, displayed at its Hayle store.

It is understood that the type of products varied but included “ready-to-eat” items such as children’s yoghurts that were almost four weeks past their expiration date.

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At a hearing at Plymouth Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday (23 April), the supermarket chain admitted to two offences related to offering unsafe food for sale, based on 62 products that were past their use-by date.

District Judge Jo Matson said the systems in place to stop the sale of expired food were not adhered to and described Asda’s response as “not sufficient” after it was notified by both customers and Trading Standards.

“Use-by dates are applied to highly perishable foods that could pose a serious health risk if consumed after this date and Food Standards Agency guidance states they should not be eaten,” Cornwall Council said.

Jane Tomlinson, the Trading Standards group leader at Cornwall Council added: “Consumers should be confident that the food they buy is safe to eat.

“We hope that the steps Asda Stores Ltd have now put in place will prevent the sale of out-of-date food in future.”

A spokesperson from Asda said: “The safety of our customers is always our top priority, and we regret that out-of-date products were found on sale at two of our Cornwall stores during October and November 2023.

“Since these instances, we have implemented a new date code checking process in all stores, ensuring that every short life product is checked daily.”