Lucknow: Consumers buying sweets in Uttar Pradesh will get clearer information about freshness and shelf life from Oct 15, after the state Food Safety and Drug Administration (FSDA) made it mandatory for sellers to display the “use-by date” for sweets kept for sale or in storage.The move is expected to have the biggest impact on loose sweets, for which there was no explicit mandatory provision requiring shops to indicate the last date by which the item should be consumed. FSDA officials said recent inspections and enforcement drives at sweet manufacturing units and retail outlets found that customers were often not given clear details about either the date of manufacture or the period during which a sweet remained suitable for consumption.The department said the absence of visible date information limited consumers’ ability to make informed choices about safety and freshness, particularly when sweets are stored for varying durations before being sold.An order issued by FSDA commissioner Roshan Jacob noted that the usable life of sweets differs widely by type and composition, with shelf life ranging from one day to 30 days across varieties. FSDA said quality, taste and freshness can deteriorate over time, making use-by date disclosure important for consumer awareness and food safety.Under the new arrangement, sweet shops and manufacturing establishments will have to clearly display the use-by date for sweets that are displayed or stored for sale. FSDA said the requirement is designed to help customers understand how long a particular sweet is considered fit for consumption before purchase.Officials said use-by or expiry information is already mandatory for packaged sweets under existing rules, but loose sweets have not been subject to a similar, explicit display requirement.FSDA said the measure aligns with consumer protection and public health objectives under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006. It cited Section 18(1)(a), which provides for protection of human life and health and consumer interests, and Section 30(2)(d), which mandates effective and uniform implementation of food safety standards with transparency, reliability and objectivity.In a separate step, Uttar Pradesh has also prohibited the use of ethylene glycol and diethylene glycol in milk and dairy-product processing units across the state.
