The Editor
You may be interested in posting the attached article on food fraud which I did in 2000. The topic is topical as Ms. Ena Harvey talked about the topic in today’s paper [8 August 2019]. The scan is from the original newspaper cuttings and gives a run down on the history of food fraud.
Food fraud is widespread. In the past canned goods were embossed with the expiry dates. The observant consumer would have noticed that these days,the expiry dates are stamped in ink. Obviously,given the right chemical solvents,these inked-on dates can easily be replaced with new dates even after expiry. Unscrupulous persons in the food industry can exploit these opportunities in developing countries quite readily. One way of detecting these types of fraud is by testing for the vitamin content which declines with time,especially with canned products.The food products near the expiry dates are sold off en mass by auction very cheaply. It cost a few cents to relabel and change the expiry dates.
I am sorry about the quality of the scans. This one is some what better. At least it can be read.
Robert D. Lucas, Ph.D, Food Biotechnologist
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