Check food baskets, consumer warned

JAKARTA (JP): If you receive food and drink products in finely decorated baskets this coming Idul Fitri, be sure to check the expiration dates on the cover of every item, the Indonesian Consumers Organization (YLKI) warns.

Whether imported or locally produced, there is a distinct possibility that items are unfit for consumption, either because they have passed the expiration dates, or even worse, they do not even have expiration dates in the first place.

Should anything happen to a person after consuming unfit products, he or she would not have any legal recourse, YLKI researcher Retno Widiastuti said yesterday.

Retno said her organization conducted a study on the contents of food and beverages included in Idul Fitri food parcels in 1995 and found that there was great ignorance about acceptable standards among distributors as well as consumers.

Among defective items found in the 1995 report were dairy products, jams, chocolates, candies, cookies, dried vegetables, canned cereals, canned fruits, vegetables, meat and fish, tea and soft drinks.

The tradition of sending food baskets during Idul Fitri or Christmas, usually between business relations, in Indonesia has been used by food distributors to unload products they could not sell in supermarkets.

This is because in all likelihood, the person who places the order would not take the trouble to check the content of the baskets. Meanwhile, recipients consider it impolite to complain to the sender if they find bad items among the products in the basket.

Retno said many food and beverages included in 1995 food baskets had been smuggled into the country and therefore were never subjected to the government's health scrutiny.

All imported food and beverages must carry the label Makanan Luar Negeri (imported food) and a registration code number from the Ministry of Health and a customs sticker from the Ministry of Finance. By regulation, imported food and beverages must pass the quality standard test from the Ministry of Health and a certificate stating authorized distribution from the country of origin.

Retno said some of the products that were included in the gift baskets carried labels that were barely legible or even forged.

Locally products do not necessarily fare better because many of them do not even state expiration dates, she said.

Retno said her organization encourages people to file complaints if they find defective products in their baskets.

The Ministry of Health could not be reached yesterday for comment on the issue.

Sudaryatmo, a member of YLKI's consumer complaints division, said Indonesian laws currently do not afford legal protection for consumers against abuses by producers, importers or distributors.

Given the weak legal protection, Sudaryatmo advised consumers to be highly critical when looking at advertising and labeling. (01)