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A significant application has been implemented to inform consumers about counterfeit, adulterated, and fraudulent products. With the application that came into effect today, companies and products that endanger consumer health are being exposed one by one.
Speaking about the new application, Minister of Agriculture and Forestry İbrahim Yumaklı announced that counterfeit, adulterated, and fraudulent products will be shared with the public in real-time. "Foods that will endanger health and foods that are counterfeited and adulterated will be published under the food public announcement section on the website guvenilirgida.tarimorman.gov.tr. We will share public announcements with our consumers in real-time, electronically. In the new system, instead of long bureaucratic processes, the results will be entered into the system more quickly. When our citizens fall into these two categories, they will be able to access information such as announcement date, company name, brand, product name, non-compliance, and batch/serial number," he stated.
THERE ARE EVEN THOSE WHO USE TEXTILE DYE IN FOOD
"Products that endanger people's health can be exemplified by the use of textile dye in food. In cases of detection of such situations, we collect and destroy these products from the market. These acts are defined as crimes in the legislation because they endanger people's lives and health. Therefore, in addition to our own sanctions against these businesses, we file criminal complaints with the Public Prosecutor's Offices. In the case of counterfeit or adulterated products, we can give examples such as mixing different oils and selling them as olive oil, or adding margarine to cheese. In case of detection, we also collect these products. We impose heavy fines for the first two detections within three years. However, if it occurs for the third time within three years, this is also defined as a crime in the legislation. In such cases, we again file criminal complaints with the Public Prosecutor's Offices," he said.
771 MILLION LIRA FINE FOR FIRMS ENGAGING IN IRREGULARITIES
Continuing his remarks, Minister Yumaklı stated, "We conduct checks on a number of requirements such as the hygiene of food businesses, food label information, temperature requirements that must be adhered to, traceability records, and the control of documents for which they are responsible." He also shared with the public the fines imposed on food businesses after inspections. Providing information about the fines imposed on food businesses after inspections, Minister Yumaklı said, "Last year, our teams conducted 1.3 million inspections. So far this year, we have detected 16,000 irregularities in 940,000 inspections. We imposed an administrative fine of 771 million lira. We filed criminal complaints against 368 businesses. By the end of the year, we will have conducted nearly 1.5 million inspections. In case of irregularities, we have various administrative sanctions. We can stop the activities of food businesses that do not comply with hygiene principles, impose administrative fines, etc. We collect and destroy non-compliant products from the market. For irregularities that constitute a crime, we file criminal complaints with the Public Prosecutor's Offices," he stated. Minister Yumaklı also mentioned the efforts made to prevent consumer deception, saying, "From harvesting to processing and storage, from production to transportation and distribution, and finally to consumption, we are working to fulfill this responsibility at every stage. To prevent consumer deception and protect our traditional products, we have banned the use of additives in some foods. We have prohibited the production of products that misleadingly resemble pomegranate molasses, such as pomegranate molasses sauce and pomegranate-flavored sauce, as well as products that resemble lemon juice, such as lemon sauce. We have the NMR technology used by a few countries in the world. By updating the honey regulation, we have started to accept NMR devices as a decision criterion in honey analyses. Thus, we will be able to use advanced analytical methods in detecting counterfeiting and adulteration in honey," he stated.
THE NAME OF THE FOOD AND NET QUANTITY WILL BE VISIBLE ON SHELVES
Minister Yumaklı continued his speech as follows: "We have set new additional criteria for probiotic microorganisms used in dietary supplements. We have initiated concentrated, simultaneous sectoral food inspections focusing on one sector at a time. By preparing the Nutrition Declaration Guide, we have prevented consumer deception with the sugar-free declaration. Misleading fruit and vegetable visuals cannot be used in foods produced from aroma. In foods that can be confused with each other, expressions like 'taste', 'flavor', and 'enjoyment' cannot be used. For example, in margarine with added butter flavor, expressions like 'butter taste' and 'butter flavor' cannot be used. The name of the food and net quantity will be written in the area that will be seen at first glance when purchasing. If it contains alcohol, sugar, or sweeteners, this information will be written more prominently than other information in a way that consumers can easily understand," he said. Minister Yumaklı also emphasized that consumers need to be vigilant, stating, "In all these processes, we adopt the understanding that 'the best inspector is the consumer himself.' We cannot carry out the issue of reliable food without our citizens. We want to see them more in the process. Just like in the QR code application. We also call on companies and businesses to 'recheck your own processes.' This way, building brand trust will also be a gain for our companies," he stated.
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