Frozen meatballs, spicy sauce in jar, mineral water bottles, pasta, lollies in a pack and cakes in a pack were bought from a grocery store in early Oct. 2018. All packs were labelled ‘Best Before’ a certain date in 2019 or 2020. No receipt was given at the store. After consumed one cake, one mineral water and half pack of meatballs and I noticed the meatballs did not come with a normal taste and colour after boiled, products checked again at home and I found a few issues:
‘Expiry Date’ found on all meatball packs as ‘XX March 2015’. Black ink printed on pack removed but the machine pressed marks are still visible. All packs relabelled with a paper price tag ‘Best Before March 2019’. A thorough check on all items revealed (in the same order above):
Sauce jar number 1 does not come with a printed BB or Exp. Date. A price tag with ‘Best Before Oct. 2020’ is the only reliable source; sauce jar number 2’s ‘Best Before’ info was removed as ink mark is visible; the BB date on the price tag is March 2019 but the year ‘2017’ is also visible that this jar in ink form on the lid
Mineral water best before in Aug. 2017 covered by a new label issued by the wholeseller before reaching the grocery store. New label comes with ‘Best Before Dec. 2019’
Pasta’s Best before date is in Jan.2019 but there are multiple pieces of insects and insects’ faeces at the bottom of the pack, hard to see at the time of purchase at store
Lolllies Best Before in 2017, resurrected by a new Best Before tag ‘June 2019’
Cakes with no info. Of manufacturer, product of origin; best before date printed on the cake image label ‘Dec. 2019’.
Not only the grocery, wholesalers may also involve in the misconduct of relabelling and tempering the expiryor best before date by removing the ink of original Exp./BB dates, putting a paper tag on it or on a spot next to it on the pack.
Question 1,
Violations in which Act can we conclude, based on information provided by me above?
Question 2,
Instead of bring the receipt for refund, is there any Department I can report to for a better result, include money back, possible compensation and a sanction issued by the government to rectify this misconduct?
Question 3,
Is a deliberate covering of frozen meat products, which expired in 2015 (as mentioned before - Exp. XX March 2015’), with a new paper tag as ‘Best Before March 2019’ more serious than relabelling a product originally come with a Best Before Date?
Question 4,
When complaining against a particular product, such as the mineral water bottles clearly relabelled by the wholeseller with an extended BB date in 2019, am I protected by the same Food Act relevant to the other products which may be mislabelled or deliberately relabelled by the grocery store?
‘Expiry Date’ found on all meatball packs as ‘XX March 2015’. Black ink printed on pack removed but the machine pressed marks are still visible. All packs relabelled with a paper price tag ‘Best Before March 2019’. A thorough check on all items revealed (in the same order above):
Sauce jar number 1 does not come with a printed BB or Exp. Date. A price tag with ‘Best Before Oct. 2020’ is the only reliable source; sauce jar number 2’s ‘Best Before’ info was removed as ink mark is visible; the BB date on the price tag is March 2019 but the year ‘2017’ is also visible that this jar in ink form on the lid
Mineral water best before in Aug. 2017 covered by a new label issued by the wholeseller before reaching the grocery store. New label comes with ‘Best Before Dec. 2019’
Pasta’s Best before date is in Jan.2019 but there are multiple pieces of insects and insects’ faeces at the bottom of the pack, hard to see at the time of purchase at store
Lolllies Best Before in 2017, resurrected by a new Best Before tag ‘June 2019’
Cakes with no info. Of manufacturer, product of origin; best before date printed on the cake image label ‘Dec. 2019’.
Not only the grocery, wholesalers may also involve in the misconduct of relabelling and tempering the expiryor best before date by removing the ink of original Exp./BB dates, putting a paper tag on it or on a spot next to it on the pack.
Question 1,
Violations in which Act can we conclude, based on information provided by me above?
Question 2,
Instead of bring the receipt for refund, is there any Department I can report to for a better result, include money back, possible compensation and a sanction issued by the government to rectify this misconduct?
Question 3,
Is a deliberate covering of frozen meat products, which expired in 2015 (as mentioned before - Exp. XX March 2015’), with a new paper tag as ‘Best Before March 2019’ more serious than relabelling a product originally come with a Best Before Date?
Question 4,
When complaining against a particular product, such as the mineral water bottles clearly relabelled by the wholeseller with an extended BB date in 2019, am I protected by the same Food Act relevant to the other products which may be mislabelled or deliberately relabelled by the grocery store?