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Need to take care of and pay attention to the foods within expiration date. |
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Room 701, Seoul YWCA, 1-1, Myeongdong 1(il)-ga, Jung-gu, Seoul,
TEL +82-02-774-4050, FAX +82-02-774-4090
Effecitive Date |
: Feb. 10, 2012 |
Dept. in Charge |
: Secretary General Choi Su-gyeong Team leader Jo June-ha |
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Tel |
: +82-02-770-4050 |
Need to take care of and pay attention to the foods within expiration date. |
- 345 cases of spoiled foods within expiration date reported in 2011 - |
The Korea National Council of Consumer Organizations (KNCCO) (President Kim Jae-ok) has analyzed the cases of counseling in 2011 concerned with the expiration date of foods. A total of 775 cases concerned with the expiration date of foods were reported, and among them, 345 cases were about the foods that spoiled even though the expiration date had not passed.
1. Among the 775 total cases concerned with the expiration date of foods, 345 cases were about the foods that spoiled even though the expiration date had not passed, 64 cases were about the absence of the expiration date, and 366 cases were about the sale of the products of which the expiration date has already passed.
The most reported cases were during the summer months of July and August: 46 and 44 respectively. However, there were also 42 cases and 28 cases reported during the winter months of November and December respectively. Thus it is required to pay close attention to the safety of foods even during the winter season.
[Table 1] Cases reported in each month of 2011 about the spoiling of foods within expiration date
Month |
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
6 |
7 |
8 |
9 |
10 |
11 |
12 |
Total |
No. of cases |
21 |
17 |
20 |
24 |
18 |
27 |
46 |
44 |
43 |
15 |
42 |
28 |
345 |
Among the food items, milk was reported the most with 57 cases, followed by beverages (22 cases), bread (21 cases), and cookies (16 cases). It was analyzed that liquid items such as milk and beverage spoil easily.
[Table 2] Number of cases of spoiling within expiration date reported in 2011 per item
Item |
No. of Cases |
milk |
67 |
beverage |
32 |
bread |
31 |
cookie |
26 |
ice cream |
24 |
grainery |
22 |
ham & sausage |
21 |
coffee |
21 |
Noodle in plastic bag |
20 |
healthy food |
17 |
2. Regarding this matter, Korea Consumer Agency has recently suggested to divide the expiration date into 'best before' period and 'use by' period system as an alternative for the current expiration date marking system, which is an extension of the expiration date. However, as there are many cases reported about the safety of foods even under the current expiration date marking system, it is necessary to take a more careful approach.
The environment of refrigeration or freezing in the distributing companies in Korea may be different from the experiment environment at the Korea Consumer Agency, thus if the expiration date marking system is revised by generalizing the results of the experiment of the Korea Consumer Agency, it may cause serious harm and damage to consumers' health.
In relation to the suggestion of Korea Consumer Agency, KNCCO calls for the concerned government agencies to take a careful and long-term approach with the revision of the expiration date marking system, and will discuss the methods more thoroughly, manage and supervise the manufacturer overtly, and transport and store foods before the revision of the expiration date marking system.
Consumers Korea, Korea Consumer Education Center, YMCA Korea, YWCA Korea, Headquarters of Korean Wives, Consumers Union of Korea, Green Consumer Network, Korean Federation of Housewives Clubs, National Council of Homemakers' Classes, Korea Consumer Affairs Institute |
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