I'm another one who's more guided by smell and feel rather than dates, although I am wary when assessing chicken, pork or fish. Shopping at the market means your food rarely comes with a "best befoer" sticker on it, so you're forced to use your own judgement. I discovered that cream that was very close to, or a little past its use by date is much better for making pasta sauce than fresh cream.

Also, I don't understand the workmate who threw out carrots because they were out of date. Surely you can look at a carrot and decide if it's ok or not to eat? Surely people can't be that afraid of food?