EDITORIAL - FDA crackdown on expiry dates long overdue

Here is something most consumers do not know: The "Best Before" dates printed on consumer items sold in stores are not the same as "Expiry Dates," according to the Food and Drug Administration of the Philippines. In a news report on ABS-CBN, an FDA official said it is not true that there is an extension beyond the expiry date, such that it is still all right for food to be eaten beyond that date. According to the official, food must no longer be eaten beyond the expiry date on its label.

It is a different thing with "Best Before" dates. The FDA official said it is still all right to eat food beyond the best before dates indicated on the label, except that it may no longer taste as good or as fresh than if eaten before the specified dates. The clarification was issued by the FDA in line with its warning that it will strictly be enforcing its requirement for all packaged food items to carry expiry dates effective 2017.

The FDA official said the agency actually set forth the requirement back in 2014 but had to set the implementation back in deference to requests by businesses to allow them time to dispose of their stocks. But there will be no setting back or putting off the requirement this time. By 2017, the requirement for all food items to carry expiry dates will be strictly enforced.

The FDA said packaged food manufacturers may still put "Best Before" dates on their products, but these must at the same time carry "Expiry Dates" or else they will be meted sanctions. The Department of Trade and Industry agrees. A DTI official said expiry dates are a useful guide for consumers to know when food items may be dangerous for consumption.

It is good that both the FDA and the DTI are putting their feet down on the matter of expiry dates because these are very useful tools in promoting consumer rights and protecting public health. In fact, it is a wonder why the Department of Health itself has not entered the picture as well. It is time the consumers get the protection they need against bad business practices.

And while they are at it, these agencies might as well also look into the practice of some retailers such as groceries and supermarkets of trying to obscure or hide these "Best Before" or "Expiry Dates." The most common practice is by way of sticking price tags over the best before or expiry dates. Sticking price tags over these relevant dates may seem innocuous because consumers are also interested in checking the prices of goods they intend to buy.

This is a form of deception. By pasting the price tags over the best before and expiry dates, retailers draw the attention of the buyer away from something that ultimately proves more important than the price – and that is their health. Such a practice has been going on for so long it is a wonder government regulators have not been able to discover them. Maybe they were pretending not to notice anything.