Bhubaneswar: A new rule implemented by Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has made it compulsory for all sweetmeat shops to display on the products the sign ‘best before date’. The rule has come into effect Thursday onwards.
The food regulator has said that all shops selling loose and non-packaged sweets must strictly follow the rule. This is an effort by the FSSAI to ensure food safety.
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A letter to Commissioners of Food Safety of all states and Union Territories, FSSAI wrote, “In the public interest and to ensure food safety, it has been decided in case of non-packaged/loose sweets at different outlets for sale to display the ‘best before’ date of food products mandatorily with effect from October 1, 2020.”
The confectioners however, have been given the liberty to decide the expiry date of the sweets depending upon the nature of the product as well as the local conditions.
The FSSAI have uploaded on its website the shelf lives of various varieties of sweets for referral. The FSSAI has said that all sweetmeat shops must follow the new directives. It has also asked all state Commissioners to see to it that the directives are strictly implemented.
The FSSAI has said that it decided to implement the rule as complaints regarding the quality of sweets were being received from various quarters. Consumers have also complained on numerous occasions after being sold adulterated products. Hence the food regulator decided to implement the new rule.
PNN
