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Er... Where is the expiry date?
Only 19 food groups need it, says AVA; experts prefer it for all
By Jessica Lim & Amanda Tan
Although not against the law, food and retail experts say buyers should be wary as the products may have been sitting on supermarket shelves for a long time. -- ST PHOTO: AZIZ HUSSIN
THE next time you shop for groceries, look more closely at the crimp on the carton: it may have no expiry date listed.
Though this is not illegal, food and retail experts say it could mean the products have been sitting on supermarket shelves for a long time - even years.
A Straits Times check of 100 brands of food products at five supermarket chains conducted over the past two days found that 14 did not sport use-by dates.
The supermarkets surveyed were Sheng Siong, Mustafa Centre, Shop N Save, Carrefour and NTUC FairPrice.
At Mustafa Centre, packets of spices like pepper and cardamom under housebrand Uncle Cook's did not carry expiry dates. At Sheng Siong, bread buns were packed in label-less plastic bags, while at Shop N Save, the carbonated Mirinda drink was found without an expiry date.
Other items found included sunflower seeds and Chinese herbs.
The Consumers Association of Singapore handled nine complaints last year about goods that had expired or had no expiry date labels. In 2009, there were 10 complaints.
According to the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA), only 19 categories of food products need to be marked with expiry dates. 'AVA conducts checks regularly at the manufacturing plants, at the point of import, or at the retail outlets for compliance with labelling requirements,' said a spokesman for the regulatory body.
Penalties for non-compliance are a fine of up to $1,000 on the first conviction and up to $2,000 for subsequent ones. However, health professionals, retail experts and manufacturers say all products should have expiry dates.
Senior retail lecturer Sarah Lim from Singapore Polytechnic said unmarked products can be kept on shelves for years. 'A longer shelf-life benefits manufacturers because they can sell more,' she said.
Mr Allan Tan, a spokesman for the 270-member Singapore Food Manufacturers' Association, said: 'It should be a must to have expiry dates. What kind of food can last forever?'
He added that manufacturers conduct shelf-life testing for the foods they sell to determine use-by dates.
Mr Chong Kok Yoong, vice-president of food industries at TUV SUD PSB, which tests food products for safety here, said: '(The) dates may not be related to food safety but... to let consumers know when the products have reached peak quality. If in doubt... simply throw it away. It's better not to take chances especially with young children, the infirm, or the elderly,' he added.
Regulations on food labelling vary across countries. In the United States, for example, product dating is not required except for infant formula, according to the US Food and Drug Administration.
Meanwhile, Mr Mustaq Ahmad, managing director of Mohamed Mustafa & Samsuddin, which operates Mustafa Centre, said he would ensure that all food products carry expiry dates by year-end.
'We will make sure all manufacturers put expiry dates on all food products from now on. It helps us track the freshness of our products,' he said.
Sheng Siong's spokesman said most of its products have expiry dates and that it conducts regular checks to ensure products on the shelf have not expired.
'For fresh food products such as beancurd, which sells by the buckets, vegetables and fruit, there is usually no labelling of expiry dates since their expiry is noticeable simply by appearance,' she said.
A Shop N Save spokesman said that Mirinda drinks at its stores do not have the labels. 'If customers are not satisfied with the product, they can return it to us for an exchange or full refund,' she said.
For consumer Joseph Zagrodnik, 35, expiry dates on all food products is an imperative. 'Eventually, everything goes off or loses potency. All foods should have an expiry date,' said the teacher.
He said he recently bought a packet of dried coriander from a store in Little India with no expiry date.
'It had no flavour at all. It was like buying dirt,' he said.
[email protected]
[email protected]
Only 19 food groups need it, says AVA; experts prefer it for all
By Jessica Lim & Amanda Tan
Although not against the law, food and retail experts say buyers should be wary as the products may have been sitting on supermarket shelves for a long time. -- ST PHOTO: AZIZ HUSSIN
THE next time you shop for groceries, look more closely at the crimp on the carton: it may have no expiry date listed.
Though this is not illegal, food and retail experts say it could mean the products have been sitting on supermarket shelves for a long time - even years.
A Straits Times check of 100 brands of food products at five supermarket chains conducted over the past two days found that 14 did not sport use-by dates.
The supermarkets surveyed were Sheng Siong, Mustafa Centre, Shop N Save, Carrefour and NTUC FairPrice.
At Mustafa Centre, packets of spices like pepper and cardamom under housebrand Uncle Cook's did not carry expiry dates. At Sheng Siong, bread buns were packed in label-less plastic bags, while at Shop N Save, the carbonated Mirinda drink was found without an expiry date.
Other items found included sunflower seeds and Chinese herbs.
The Consumers Association of Singapore handled nine complaints last year about goods that had expired or had no expiry date labels. In 2009, there were 10 complaints.
According to the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA), only 19 categories of food products need to be marked with expiry dates. 'AVA conducts checks regularly at the manufacturing plants, at the point of import, or at the retail outlets for compliance with labelling requirements,' said a spokesman for the regulatory body.
Penalties for non-compliance are a fine of up to $1,000 on the first conviction and up to $2,000 for subsequent ones. However, health professionals, retail experts and manufacturers say all products should have expiry dates.
Senior retail lecturer Sarah Lim from Singapore Polytechnic said unmarked products can be kept on shelves for years. 'A longer shelf-life benefits manufacturers because they can sell more,' she said.
Mr Allan Tan, a spokesman for the 270-member Singapore Food Manufacturers' Association, said: 'It should be a must to have expiry dates. What kind of food can last forever?'
He added that manufacturers conduct shelf-life testing for the foods they sell to determine use-by dates.
Mr Chong Kok Yoong, vice-president of food industries at TUV SUD PSB, which tests food products for safety here, said: '(The) dates may not be related to food safety but... to let consumers know when the products have reached peak quality. If in doubt... simply throw it away. It's better not to take chances especially with young children, the infirm, or the elderly,' he added.
Regulations on food labelling vary across countries. In the United States, for example, product dating is not required except for infant formula, according to the US Food and Drug Administration.
Meanwhile, Mr Mustaq Ahmad, managing director of Mohamed Mustafa & Samsuddin, which operates Mustafa Centre, said he would ensure that all food products carry expiry dates by year-end.
'We will make sure all manufacturers put expiry dates on all food products from now on. It helps us track the freshness of our products,' he said.
Sheng Siong's spokesman said most of its products have expiry dates and that it conducts regular checks to ensure products on the shelf have not expired.
'For fresh food products such as beancurd, which sells by the buckets, vegetables and fruit, there is usually no labelling of expiry dates since their expiry is noticeable simply by appearance,' she said.
A Shop N Save spokesman said that Mirinda drinks at its stores do not have the labels. 'If customers are not satisfied with the product, they can return it to us for an exchange or full refund,' she said.
For consumer Joseph Zagrodnik, 35, expiry dates on all food products is an imperative. 'Eventually, everything goes off or loses potency. All foods should have an expiry date,' said the teacher.
He said he recently bought a packet of dried coriander from a store in Little India with no expiry date.
'It had no flavour at all. It was like buying dirt,' he said.
[email protected]
[email protected]
