M&S encourages all customers 'please check this' when buying food items

M&S has encouraged shoppers to check the label when buying food items in store. The warning comes after a customer contacted the shop as they were disappointed with a product they had bought.

Contacting the shop chain on social media, they said: "I’ve purchased an item from your food store today and I’ve only noticed when I got home the use by date is today. This item wasn’t reduced and I was planning on using this over the week so I’m a bit surprised."

They asked if someone from could contact them about the issue. As a result, the shop chain replied to explain why their use-by dates may be less generous than at other .

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The group said: "We don't use any unnecessary preservatives in our foods, which means a shorter shelf life.

"If we've got loads to clear, we may reduce products but this isn't always the case."

M&S also issued a general reminder that it's good to check the label when buying food in store. The group said: "We do encourage customers to look at the dates when purchasing our food to save any disappointment.

"I can appreciate you may have missed it this time." The food retailer also suggested one potential solution if you buy an item that will soon pass its use-by date: "Many of our products are freezable too, meaning you can enjoy them at a later date."

M&S customer services in store and online continue to be affected after a major cyber attack hit the retailer.

In response to a customer who asked yesterday (May 26) when online orders would resume, the group said: "All online ordering is currently unavailable.

"We can’t confirm when it will resume at the moment, but we are working very hard to get operations back online."

The group previously issued a statement explaining that some customer details were taken in the cyber incident, including personal information such as phone numbers, email addresses and online shopping histories.

In light of these details being compromised, cyber security expert Durgan Cooper urged people to look out for suspicious messages purportedly from M&S.

He said: "Importantly, customers should avoid clicking on unsolicited emails or messages claiming to offer 'M&S workarounds' or discounts — cybercriminals often exploit confusion following incidents like this."