Tuesday, 29 September 2020 | PNS | Dehradun
Regarding the instructions of Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) to mention the manufacturing and best before date of loose sweets displayed in shops from October 1, the confectioners and sweet sellers in Dehradun stated that they welcome the decision and have no issues in displaying the said dates. According to the president of Dehradun Halwai Association and owner of Anandam Group, Anand Gupta, “There is some confusion among people regarding the instructions that the manufacturing and best before date must be printed in the box which is not true.” He said that as per the guidelines, the confectioners are supposed to display the dates on the trays or containers containing the non-packaged sweets in the shops only. “It is always mentioned in the box to consume certain sweets within 24 hours or 48 hours, so there is no need to mention best before date to consume the sweets on every box. These instructions were initially supposed to be implemented from April but due to Covid-19, the authorities delayed it,” stated Gupta. According to him, this step will help the customers to know manufacturing details of their shops while keeping their purchase transparent with the shopkeeper.
Another local confectioner from Sahastradhara Road, Rajat Sharma said, “Sweets are perishable products so even if one wants to sell old sweets, the customers eventually find out. If anybody sells substandard sweets, it damages one’s reputation and you cannot exist for long in the business. Writing the dates on the tray of every sweet would be chaotic initially but it is not a big issue if it satisfies authorities and customers during the pandemic when people are trying to be extra aware about sanitation and health.”
However, some locals stated that issuing guidelines is not enough, the authorities concerned should also make sure that every shopkeeper of sweets is following the rules. “Instructing shopkeepers to display the manufacturing and expiry dates of sweets alongside the sweet containers is not enough. The authorities should also check such places regularly to maintain the implementation of the instructions. Adulteration in sweets during festive seasons is not uncommon so the administration should start the inspection of such places from October so that it can be restricted to some extent in Dehradun,” said Ashutosh Singh, a Karnpur resident.
Meanwhile, on the question of what steps would be taken by the authorities if any shopkeeper does not follow the instructions, Dehradun district food safety officer, Ganesh Kandwal said that there are organised and unorganised sections in sweets business like big reputed sweet shops and small shops and it is important for both of them to display manufacturing and best before date but it will take time. People are not used to label sweets or check out the labels displaying the dates therefore, as per Kandwal, the said guidelines had been issued to make the sweet sellers and public aware about such things, especially before Diwali. He added that initially the authorities will just observe the sweet shops and if it is found out that the instructions are not being followed, action will be taken as per the situation.
