Sweetshop or our traditional halwai shop will soon have to declare the manufacturing and best before the date of all loose sweets.
Sweets particularly those with milk products have a lesser shelf life. Traditional milk-based sweets are generally prepared from khoya, chhena, sugar and other ingredients such as maida, flavours and colours e.g. peda, burfi, milk cake, gulab jamun, rasgulla, rasmalai etc. which have very less shelf life.
FSSAI has asked local mithai and sweet shop owners to display the “manufacturing date” and the “best before” date on loose sweets sold in their shops in a move that will help ensure that the consumers are purchasing a fresh product.
To control the sale of stale and expired sweets being sold in the market, the FSSAI said it is asking shops to comply with such labelling orders to ensure that consumption of such products does not pose a potential health hazard to the consumers.
FSSAI has also issued separate guidance on milk products comprising of the indicative shelf life along with a suggestive logo of various types of sweets.
FSSAI is trying to address the hygiene in the preparation and consumption within shelf life.
Branded sweet retailers already follow the practice for their packaged products such as rasgulla and soan papdi.
Food safety commissioners of states and union territories have been directed to ensure compliance of the order.
