Food authority gets tough on labelling

POLLOCK being sold as cod, British-made crisps being described as Irish and pizza cheese topping which contained no cheese are just some of the reasons why the Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) is getting tough on labelling.

And numerous enquiries and complaints registered with the authority suggested there was widespread ambiguity regarding the shelf life of many food items.

“It is alarming that some businesses are ignorant about this most basic, but critical labelling requirement — the shelf life of the product. Our campaign simply explains that a ‘Use By’ date is used on products that are highly perishable and if they are consumed after their ‘Use By’ date they could cause illness,” Dr John O’Brien, chief executive, FSAI, said yesterday.