Expiry dates critical for many products in UAE

Dubai: When a woman entered a shop to buy cosmetics, she couldn’t find the production or expiration dates on the items she picked. When she enquired, she was told, “it does not matter, make sure you use it within the number of months specified on the outer box”.

“I was not convinced but I needed to buy the creams,” she said.

To some people, expiry dates may seem unnecessary.

But experts advise consumers who ignore warning dates on some products for external and internal use are doing so at their own peril.

Not adhering to expiry dates — which imply that products should be consumed before a stamped deadline — can carry serious consequences for the health of the consumer and the pocket of the violator.

Authorities, meanwhile, are emphasising the importance of these dates.

In fact, the missing of production and expiration dates is by itself a violation that carries a fine, let alone the fact that the items could be expired, officials said.

“You have to find the production date and expiration date on all items,” said Dr Ameen Hussain al Amiri, Assistant Undersecretary for Medical Practise and Licence Sector of the UAE’s Ministry of Health.

“The main condition to register the medicines, food supplements, and cosmetics that have medical claim, is to have production date and expiration date,” he added in an interview with Gulf News, noting that “medical claim” means any item that is basically cosmetic but has an impact on health.

“During inspection visits,” said Mohammad Khalid Saeed, food health inspection officer at Dubai Municipality, “they [inspectors] pick up an item from the shelf and check the validity of the items. If there are no dates that is a violation again — a violation of labelling — and again it carries almost the same fine.”

He was referring to the fine paid for expired food, which is usually Dh1,000 per expired item. The fine multiplies if other items are found expired.

Recently, a woman entered a well-known drug store where at the entrance a big basket was located with tens of creams and lotions offered at a special low rate: each one of them was Dh29. The offer was tempting, but when she went home, she found that two out of three purchased items were expired. No production nor expiry dates were there, just a “batch date and it was covered by an adhesive price tag”, she told Gulf News.

The next day, she returned the expired items with batch dates in 2010 and 2012. Staffers attempted to argue that the items were not expired. However, the way they gave different explanations just reinforced the belief that they had actually expired some time back.

“These are natural products and don’t have expiration dates,” said the cashier when she was asked for a refund. No cash refund was offered, just an exchange voucher.

One of the pharmacists denied they are expired, insisting they are still valid. Shortly afterwards when the woman asked for an explanation of the batch date, she said a third employee replied: “Ma’am, we sent a request to the warehouse asking them to clarify what is batch date, and we are waiting to hear from them.”

When she told a friend of her experience, the friend said, “You know what, I bought some cosmetics yesterday and when I asked about the expiry date because there was none, I was told it doesn’t matter, what is important is the sign of a small jar printed on the outer boxes, where you make sure you use it within the number of months specified.”

She was not convinced, but she bought the products.

Expiration dates and validity of different items vary among items. There are validity periods for food items, medicines, and cosmetics.

Some pharmacists say that people can still use some medicines and supplements for a few months after the expiration dates – though the effect of the active ingredients would not be as effective as medicine that has not expired.

According to UAE regulations, no medicine is allowed to enter the country if it does not have at least two-thirds of its “shelf life” of the production date valid, Al Amiri said.

For example, if any medicine has a three-year validity, it should have at least two years’ validity before being allowed into the country. Other inspection visits are done in nearly 1,400 private pharmacies across the UAE, medicines warehouses and manufacturers.

“This applies to conventional medicine, herbal medicine, veterinary medicines and food supplements which have a medical claim,” said Al Amiri.

“A food supplement that doesn’t have a medical claim is under the responsibility of the municipality,” he said.

The same applies to cosmetic products. Products, including creams and lotions, that have medical claim are under the control of the Ministry of Health while other cosmetic products that have no medical claims fall under the authority of Dubai Municipality.

Fines of violators include warnings, followed by closure and fines depending on the scope and repetition of violation.

As for food stores and groceries, inspectors visit warehouses, manufacturing companies and supermarkets.

According to municipal food inspector Saeed, there were 2,372 complaints received in 2012, down from 3,015 complaints received in 2011. Complaints included not only expired items but also contaminated food and items that led to poisoning.