Mar 20, 2017
E-commerce sites should display manufacturing and expiry dates on packaged foods, consumers say
Ordering packaged food from e-commerce sites has increased many folds in the recent years but the absence of manufacturing and expiry dates on such products often leads to the product not being fully utilised.
Ordering packaged food from e-commerce sites has increased many folds in the recent years but the absence of manufacturing and expiry dates on such products often leads to the product not being fully utilised. A whooping 96 per cent of the participants in a recent survey agreed that ecommerce sites should mandatorily disclose manufacturing and expiry dates of such products sold on their sites.
Citizen engagement platform LocalCircles conducted a poll and asked how many of the consumers thought that ecommerce sites should mandatorily disclose manufacturing and expiry date of the packaged food products sold on their sites.
Out of the approximately 10,000 consumers who voted, 96 per cent answered in a yes, with only 2 per cent, saying it should not be done and 2 per cent choosing not to answer.
"LocalCircles will be taking up this issue shortly with Food Safety & Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) and the Department of Consumer Affairs requesting them to take immediate action on this matter so all eCommerce site and their sellers of packaged food comply with this ask by the consumers," the citizen engagement platform said in a statement.
This survey, according to LocalCircles, is a result of several complaints from users, stating that some of the packaged food that they ordered from ecommerce sites is quite close to its expiry date and has limited shelf life available.
The display of manufacturing and expiry dates as well as the MRP, LocalCircles said, will help the consumer as well as increase consumer trust in the eCommerce channel.
GM crops could contribute to higher food output: ICAR chief
KARNAL: A discussion on the impact of the genetically modified (GM) crops on food security was organised at the National Dairy Research Institute (NDRI), Karnal on Saturday where experts deliberated over various aspects of the issue. The discussion was part of D Sundaresan Memorial Oration on impact of genetically modified crops on food security.
The director general of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) Trilochan Mohapatra, who is the secretary of the department of agricultural research and education (DARE), presented his views on the GM crops. He said, "Around 900 million people in the world are undernourished. Many more suffer from specific nutritional deficiencies, often related to insufficient intake of micro-nutrients. Eradicating hunger is a central part of the United Nations Millennium Development Goals. In order to achieve the goals, genetically modified (GM) crops are also mentioned on some occasions, as scientists see the development and use of GM crops as the key to reduce hunger amidst other controversies."
He said, "There are three possible pathways how GM crops could impact food security. First, GM crops could contribute to food production increases and thus improve the availability of food at global and local levels. Second, GM crops could affect food safety and food quality. Third, GM crops could influence the economic and social situation of farmers, thus improving or worsening their economic access to food."
Elaborating about genomics, Mohapatra said the science of genomics had transformed the way new varieties in crops and breeds in animals are being selected by providing vast knowledge about the actual genes responsible for a preferred growth trait or DNA markers tightly-linked to the trait of interest.
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