The Quezon City health department, through the veterinary office, seized early Tuesday morning, some 73 kilos of expired food products being sold by ambulant vendors in a “talipapa” or flea market in Balintawak.
The confiscated food items, sold without labels and with altered expiry dates, include tomato sauce, spaghetti sauce, seasoning mix, powdered juice, cocoa power, cheese spread, uncooked macaroni noodles, sotanghon and ‘pancit’ noodles.
The noodles, already showing signs of discoloration and pigmentation, were packed in sacks when sold to consumers. On the other hand, the cocoa powder and powdered juice were sold in unlabeled plastic packs.
City Veterinarian Dr. Maria Ana Cabel warned that tomato-based sauces when not stored properly and exposed to hot weather conditions, are hazardous to health. Consumption of these products may lead to food poisoning and gastro-intestinal infections, including diarrhea. “July 2014 pa po ang expiry date ng karamihan sa mga produktong nakumpiska namin,” Cabel said.
The raiding team also recovered bottles of acetone, which are being used to erase or alter the original expiry dates marked on the labels of the products.
Cabel said her office will be coordinating closely with the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) to verify reports that a certain Chinese trader is supplying these products to some vendors in Balintawak. All confiscated food products will be disposed of at the city’s disposal facility in Payatas.
Posted By: Edrillan Pasion
