Supermarkets are selling fish which is two weeks old and labelling it as ‘fresh’, an investigation has found. Fish on sale at the fresh counters of Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Asda and Morrisons was found to be up to 15 days old. Experts said some samples of cod, plaice, mackerel and haddock were ‘bland’ with ‘little flavour’, and that they could start to taste ‘off’ after just a day in the fridge. Scroll down for video . Current guidelines say fish can be sold as fresh if it has been kept on ice since being caught . Fish scientist Richard Chivers examined and tasted 14 pieces of fish including samples from Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Asda, Morrisons and an independent fishmonger. He found that a third of the fish – including some from Morrisons, Asda and Sainsbury’s – was between 12 and 15 days old. Mr Chivers said: ‘Customers naturally assume that fresh fish in their local supermarket is caught yesterday, if not in the past few days. ‘They think the fish is going to be fresh and tasty. But some of the samples we tested they are not going to enjoy at all.’ He used the Torry scale – an industry standard system to measure freshness – in which experts rate the fish’s physical characteristics to estimate how long ago it was caught. Mr Chivers found some fish was in danger of going off quickly. ‘These are not off, but give them a day in a domestic fridge and you would begin to taste an off odour,’ he told the Sunday Mirror. Current guidelines say fish can be sold as fresh if it has been kept on ice since being caught. Morrisons’ fisheries manager, Huw Thomas, said: ‘Careful planning ensures that the time between the fish being caught and then sold on our counters is minimal . In our experience, the Torry scale is a reliable tool for judging quality, but not food safety or how long each fish has been out of the water.’ A Tesco spokesman said: ‘We ensure all our fish is of good quality.’ Asda also defended the freshness of its products, saying: ‘We are the only retailer to publish how and where we source our wild fish.’ A Sainsbury’s spokesman said all its fish would remain ‘good quality for the duration of its shelf life’.
Experts tested fresh counters of Tesco, Sainsbury's, Asda and Morrisons .
Some samples of cod, plaice, mackeral and haddock had 'little flavour'
Fish can be sold as fresh if it has been kept on ice since being caught .
Supermarkets are selling fish which is two weeks old and labelling it as ‘fresh’, an investigation has found. Fish on sale at the fresh counters of Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Asda and Morrisons was found to be up to 15 days old. Experts said some samples of cod, plaice, mackerel and haddock were ‘bland’ with ‘little flavour’, and that they could start to taste ‘off’ after just a day in the fridge. Scroll down for video . Current guidelines say fish can be sold as fresh if it has been kept on ice since being caught . Fish scientist Richard Chivers examined and tasted 14 pieces of fish including samples from Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Asda, Morrisons and an independent fishmonger. He found that a third of the fish – including some from Morrisons, Asda and Sainsbury’s – was between 12 and 15 days old. Mr Chivers said: ‘Customers naturally assume that fresh fish in their local supermarket is caught yesterday, if not in the past few days. ‘They think the fish is going to be fresh and tasty. But some of the samples we tested they are not going to enjoy at all.’ He used the Torry scale – an industry standard system to measure freshness – in which experts rate the fish’s physical characteristics to estimate how long ago it was caught. Mr Chivers found some fish was in danger of going off quickly. ‘These are not off, but give them a day in a domestic fridge and you would begin to taste an off odour,’ he told the Sunday Mirror. Current guidelines say fish can be sold as fresh if it has been kept on ice since being caught. Morrisons’ fisheries manager, Huw Thomas, said: ‘Careful planning ensures that the time between the fish being caught and then sold on our counters is minimal . In our experience, the Torry scale is a reliable tool for judging quality, but not food safety or how long each fish has been out of the water.’ A Tesco spokesman said: ‘We ensure all our fish is of good quality.’ Asda also defended the freshness of its products, saying: ‘We are the only retailer to publish how and where we source our wild fish.’ A Sainsbury’s spokesman said all its fish would remain ‘good quality for the duration of its shelf life’.
Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Asda and Morrisons was found samples of cod, plaice, mackerel and haddock were guidelines say fish can be sold as fresh if it has been kept on ice since being caught . Fish sold as fresh if it has been kept on ice since