Best Before Dates and "Short Date" Products

Best Before vs Use By

EU food labelling distinguishes two date markings. Best Before indicates how long a product retains optimal quality, taste and aroma when stored properly — after this date it remains safe to consume, only the flavour and some nutritional properties may gradually decline. This applies to stable foods such as olive oil, honey, herbs, dried fruits, tahini and halva. Use By is reserved for highly perishable products such as fresh meat, fish or dairy, which must not be eaten after that date.

Extra virgin olive oil always carries a Best Before date — never a Use By date.

How Long Does Olive Oil Last?

For extra virgin olive oil, EU producers typically set the best before date 12–18 months from bottling (not from harvest). The exact period is determined by the producer's stability tests. After this date the oil is still safe — it simply, gradually, loses fresh aroma, fruity character and antioxidants (polyphenols, tocopherols).

A significant part of our catalogue — particularly oils in tin and bag-in-box packaging, and many premium bottled lines — is flushed with food-grade nitrogen or argon before sealing. These inert gases displace oxygen from the headspace, which is the single greatest factor in olive oil ageing. In practice this means the listed best before date reflects a regulatory minimum, not the actual quality plateau: the oil typically remains in peak condition well beyond that date, as confirmed by our follow-up lab analyses on stored stock.

Once opened, consume within 3–4 months for full flavour. Store cool, dark, tightly closed, away from heat and light.

And Honey? Honey Doesn't Really Expire

Honey is one of the most stable foods known — its low water activity, low pH and natural hydrogen peroxide content make it microbiologically inhospitable indefinitely. Edible honey has been recovered from Egyptian tombs after more than 3,000 years. Under EU law, however, every packaged food product must carry a best before date, so producers typically assign honey 2–3 years from packaging. This is a regulatory formality, not a quality limit. Our Cretan thyme, mountain herb and forest honeys remain excellent long beyond that date — they may crystallise (a natural process, easily reversed by gentle warming), but the product itself does not spoil.

Why Our Dates Are Different

Every olive oil in our catalogue comes directly from the producer, bottled from a single, recent harvest. Each product page states the harvest season (e.g. 2024/2025) and often the exact harvest month — early harvest (October) yields the highest polyphenol content; later harvests follow through November–January.

Every EVOO is backed by an independent laboratory report: polyphenol content (gallic acid equivalent), peroxide value, acidity, and where applicable NMR fingerprinting and HPLC quantification from accredited institutions. The selection is curated by a certified olive oil sommelier (Greek Olive Oil Academy, Berlin).

"Short Date" Products

Occasionally we offer products approaching their best before date at a significantly reduced price. They remain perfectly safe and, for olive oil stored correctly — especially nitrogen- or argon-flushed packaging — well within their stable shelf life. Such items are clearly marked "Short Date" in the product name; the current date is always shown in the "Additional Info" tab on the product page.

The same applies to products with slightly damaged outer packaging but intact, sealed contents — discounted, fully functional, fully safe.

Thanks to our online-only model and direct sourcing, we can offer premium products at prices often lower than at the producer's gate in Greece. Found a better price elsewhere? Let us know — we will review it. A fiscal receipt or VAT invoice is issued for every order.