Home / Complaints, courts, consumer rights / Consumer rights
Back
Published: 10/26/2018
Reading time: 4 min
0
720
Food products often have shelf life and expiration dates on their packaging.
- The concept of shelf life and its difference from expiration date
- What is the difference between shelf life and warranty period?
- What to do if you find an expired product
The difference between these two concepts is colossal and the consumer should understand the differences.
Determining the expiration dates of products
The shelf life of food products is a certain period of time during which food products must retain all the organoleptic, physicochemical properties prescribed for this product.
The requirements presented must be appropriate in terms of nutritional value, as well as in the permissible content of substances of a chemical, biological nature, their compounds, and the content of microorganisms harmful to human life and health.
All requirements are presented in established regulatory documents. Requirements also apply to the compliance of indicators of functional purpose.
Requirements of regulatory documents for food product suitability criteria:
- Organoleptic properties
- Physicochemical characteristics
- The nutritional value
- Permissible content of substances of a chemical, biological nature, their compounds
- Permissible content of microorganisms dangerous to life
- Compliance with the functional purpose criteria
The shelf life of food products must be determined in accordance with the requirements.
Consumer actions
A person who discovers that he has purchased low-quality products must file a claim with the seller. The buyer's actions depend on the stage at which it was discovered that the expiration date had expired.
If a violation was identified before acquisition, then the following actions may be taken:
- Call the department head or senior manager and point out the discovered position. The person in charge should apologize for the unpleasant situation and immediately take measures to remove the goods from store shelves.
- If the staff is unwilling to cooperate, the buyer may request a book of complaints and suggestions, where he can make a record of the incident. Under it, it is necessary to indicate contact information about the person in order to receive feedback and notification of measures taken.
It happens that sellers do not eliminate the shortcomings and do not want to provide a book of complaints, in which case the consumer can purchase a disputed product and contact the supervisory organization with it.
If a delay is detected at home, before or after consumption, a person also has the right to resolve the conflict peacefully by coming to the store or complaining directly to the sanitation station or Rospotrebnadzor.
With the voluntary cooperation of store employees, the buyer must file a claim for the return of a low-quality product that has expired.
Establishing expiration dates for products
The shelf life of food products is determined by a certain time interval: from the date of manufacture to the critical date. During this time interval, the product is considered fit for consumption.
The date of manufacture is considered to be the date of completion of the manufacturing process. The shelf life time interval consists inclusive of storage at the manufacturer's warehouse, transportation time, storage time in stores and after purchase.
The label on which the expiration date of the product is written must include the following items:
- For particularly perishable food products and products for dietary and baby food: hour, day month, year
- For perishable products: day, month, year
- For regular products: month, year
- Storage conditions rules
- Rules of use
The expiration date of perishable products does not apply to products whose container integrity was damaged during sales, transportation or at the time of consumption. The expiration date indicated on the label of a product whose storage conditions were not met also does not apply.
The shelf life of products subject to packaging is determined from the date of manufacture of the products, and not from the date of packaging.
Destruction of documents
There is no point in storing documents with an expired shelf life that have lost their relevance and significance for accounting and tax purposes. They must be destroyed. To select documents intended for destruction, organizations annually conduct an examination of the value of documents (clause 2.3.1 of the Basic Rules for the Operation of Organizational Archives).
The examination is carried out by personnel service employees under the guidance of the director of the organization. At the same time, the quality and completeness of the nomenclature of the organization’s files and the correctness of determining the storage periods for files are checked.
The selection of documents is carried out through a sheet-by-sheet review of cases. It is not permitted to select documents for destruction solely on the basis of case titles.
Filing of newly formed cases is carried out only after completion of the examination of the value of the documents. Documents with an expired storage period are included in the act of allocation for destruction of documents not subject to storage. The form of the act is given in Appendix No. 4 to the Basic Rules for the Operation of Organizational Archives.
Documents to be destroyed are entered into the act under general headings indicating the number of cases assigned to this group. The act is signed by the head of the organization. all documents included in the act are either destroyed by the organization itself or sent for disposal. The method of destruction is not regulated. Papers can be burned, shredded, recycled, etc.
The transfer of cases for recycling to a specialized company is issued with an invoice, which indicates the date of transfer, the number of cases to be handed over and the weight of the waste paper. Loading and removal for disposal are carried out under the control of an employee responsible for ensuring the safety of archive documents (clause 2.4.7 of the Basic Rules for the Operation of Organizational Archives).
Shelf life of dairy products
Dairy products are divided into: natural dairy products without additives and preservatives, dairy products, the packaging of which is made using a special technology - vacuum, and dairy products made with the addition of preservatives, substitutes and various additives.
Establishing the shelf life of dairy products is based on full compliance with the law and after testing in an independent laboratory.
The expiration date provides for a small reserve of shelf life for the product to be consumed after the stated expiration date, without loss of quality and safety.
Criteria on which the shelf life of dairy products depends
- Raw material quality
- Sanitary and hygienic indicators
- Process automation
- Compliance with production technology
- Type of packaging
The shelf life of dairy products is valid only with mandatory compliance with storage conditions, the transportation process, and the integrity of the packaging. The storage mode for dairy products is indicated on the packaging.
Shelf life of food products according to SanPin in the refrigerator (Table)
Shelf life of food products is the period of time during which the product retains the properties established in the regulatory and/or technical documentation, subject to the storage conditions specified in the documentation (may not be final).
The shelf life of food products is a limited period of time during which food products must fully comply with the requirements usually imposed on them in terms of organoleptic, physical and chemical indicators, including nutritional value and requirements for the permissible content of chemical substances, biological substances and their compounds , microorganisms and other biological organisms that pose a danger to human health, as well as meeting the criteria for their functional purpose.
Perishable foods are food products that require special temperatures and/or other conditions and regulations to maintain quality and safety, without which they undergo irreversible changes leading to damage or impairment of consumer health. Perishable foods include processed meat, poultry, eggs, milk, fish and other fish products other than fish; creamy confectionery products based on flour with a moisture content of more than 13%; finishing creams and semi-finished products, including those based on vegetable oils; beverages; plant products; fatty and fat-containing products, including mayonnaise, margarine; Frozen and semi-finished ready meals; all kinds of preserves; thermized fermented milk products and sterilized dairy products.
Particularly perishable products are products that cannot be stored without refrigeration and intended for short-term sale: milk, pasteurized cream; frozen semi-finished products from meat, poultry, fish, seafood, raw and cooked vegetables, all food products and catering dishes; fresh juices; handmade creamy confectionery; perishable products in open packages at the time of sale.
Non-perishable foods include food products that do not require storage conditions at certain temperatures in compliance with other established storage rules (alcoholic beverages, vinegar); dry products with moisture content less than 13%; unfinished bakery products, sugar-based confectionery, food concentrates.
Shelf life of prepared foods in the refrigerator
| 72 hours | Cakes and pastries without cream finishing, with protein cream or fruit finishing |
| 48 hours | Fried meat, baked duck and chicken carcasses, fried poultry and rabbit meat, baked fish of all types |
| 36 hours | Cakes and pastries with butter cream, including “Potato” cake, fried fish of all kinds |
| 24 hours | Boiled meat, stewed meat, fried liver, boiled poultry, fish, beets and carrots, boiled eggs |
| 18 hours | Boiled meat by-products - tongue, kidneys, cabbage, carrot, vegetable casseroles, boiled potatoes |
| 12 hours | Salad (meat, capital, fish) without dressing, boiled crayfish and shrimp, cutlets, meat jellies and jellied meat |
| 6 hours | Cakes and pastries with custard or whipped cream |
Shelf life of food in the freezer table
Table of shelf life of food according to SanPin in the refrigerator
Shelf life for storing particularly perishable and perishable products at a temperature of (4 ± 2) °C in the refrigerator according to SanPin 2.3.2.1324-03
| Food products, name | Shelf life of products | Hours/day |
Meat and meat products. Poultry, eggs and their products | ||
| Semi-finished boneless meat products | ||
| 1. Large-piece semi-finished products: | ||
| packaged meat, semi-finished portioned products (tenderloin, natural beefsteak, languette, entrecote, rump steak, beef, lamb, braised pork, escalope, schnitzel, etc.) without breading | 2 | days |
| portioned semi-finished products (rump steak, natural lamb and pork cutlet, schnitzel) breaded | 36 | hours |
| 2. Small-piece semi-finished products: | ||
| beef stroganoff, azu, fried, goulash, beef for stewing, meat for shish kebab, special roast, cold cuts (without sauces and spices) | 36 | hours |
| semi-finished small-piece marinated products with sauces | 24 | hours |
| 3. Semi-finished minced meat products: | ||
| molded, including breaded, stuffed (stuffed cabbage rolls, zucchini) | 24 | hours |
| combined (meat and potato cutlets, meat and vegetable cutlets, meat and cabbage cutlets, with the addition of soy protein) | 24 | hours |
| 4. Minced meat (beef, pork, meat from other slaughtered animals, combined): | ||
| produced by meat processing plants | 24 | hours |
| produced by trade and catering enterprises | 12 | hours |
| 5. Semi-finished meat and bone products (large pieces, portions, small pieces) | 36 | hours |
| 6. By-products of slaughtered animals (liver, kidneys, tongue, heart, brains) | 24 | hours |
| Semi-finished poultry products shelf life | ||
| 7. Natural semi-finished poultry products: | ||
| meat-and-bone, boneless without breading (carcass prepared for cooking, legs, fillets, quarters, tobacco chickens, thighs, drumsticks, wings, breasts) | 2 | days |
| meat and bone, boneless, breaded, with spices, with sauce, marinated | 24 | hours |
| 8. Semi-finished poultry meat products, minced, with or without breading | 18 | hours |
| 9. Minced chicken | 12 | hours |
| 10. By-products, semi-finished products from poultry by-products | 24 | hours |
| 11. Sets for jelly, stew, soup | 12 | hours |
| Culinary products - prepared dishes from meat and meat products | ||
| 12. Boiled meat (for cold dishes; in large pieces, cut into portions for first and second courses) | 24 | hours |
| 13. Stewed fried meat (fried beef and pork for cold dishes; beef and pork fried in large pieces, cut into portions for main courses, stuffed meat) | 36 | hours |
| 14. Fried minced meat products (cutlets, steaks, meatballs, schnitzels, etc.) | 24 | hours |
| 15. Meat dishes | ||
| 16. Pilaf, dumplings, manti, belyashi, pancakes, pies | 24 | hours |
| 17. Hamburgers, cheeseburgers, ready-made sandwiches, ready-made pizza | 24 | hours |
| 18. Jelly products from meat: jellied meat, brawn, jellied meat, jellied meat | 12 | hours |
| 19. Boiled meat by-products (tongue, udder, heart, kidneys, brains), fried | 24 | hours |
| 20. Liver and/or meat pates | 24 | hours |
| Culinary products from poultry meat | ||
| 21. Smoked, smoked-baked and smoked-boiled poultry carcasses and parts of carcasses | 3 | days |
| 22. Ready-made poultry dishes, fried, boiled, stewed | 2 | days |
| 23. Dishes made from minced poultry meat, with sauces and/or side dishes | 12 | hours |
| 24. Dumplings, poultry pies | 24 | hours |
| 25. Jelly products from poultry meat: brawn, jellied meat, jellied meat, including assorted meat from slaughtered animals | 12 | hours |
| 26. Pastes from poultry meat and offal | 24 | hours |
| 27. Boiled eggs | 36 | hours |
| Sausages made from meat of all types of slaughtered animals and poultry | ||
| 28. Boiled sausages produced according to GOST: | ||
| premium and first class | 3 | days |
| second class | 2 | days |
| 29. Sausages cooked according to GOST in vapor-gas-tight casings: | ||
| premium, gourmet, with added preservatives | 10 | days |
| first class | 8 | days |
| second class | 7 | days |
| 30. Sausages, boiled sausages, meat breads, produced in accordance with GOST | 3 | days |
| 31. Sausages, boiled sausages in vapor-gas-tight casings | 7 | days |
| 32. Sausages, frankfurters, boiled, sliced and vacuum-packed in a modified atmosphere | 5 | days |
| 33. Boiled meat products (hams, rolls, pressed pork and beef, ham, bacon, pressed pork head meat, molded lamb) | 3 | days |
| 34. Meat products boiled, sliced and packaged under vacuum, under modified atmosphere conditions | 5 | days |
| 35. Liver and blood sausages | 2 | days |
| 36. Sausages, frankfurters, boiled sausages with the addition of offal | 2 | days |
| 37. Sausage products cooked from poultry meat (sausages, meat loaves, rolls, frankfurters, sausages, ham, etc.): | ||
| premium | 3 | days |
| first class | 2 | days |
| 38. Sausages cooked from poultry meat, vacuum packed under modified atmosphere conditions | 5 | days |
Fish, non-fish species and products made from them and their shelf life | ||
| Semi-finished fish products | ||
| 39. Chilled fish of all types | 2 | days at temp. 0—(-2) °С |
| 40. Fish fillet | 24 | hours at temp. 0—(-2) °С |
| 41. Specially cut fish | 24 | hours at temp. -2 to +2 °С |
| 42. Food minced fish, molded minced products, including those with a flour component | 24 | hours at temp. -2 to +2 °С |
| 43. Crustaceans, bivalve mollusks, live, chilled | 12 | hours |
| Cooked fish products with heat treatment | ||
| 44. Boiled, poached, fried, stewed, baked, stuffed fish | 36 | hours |
| 45. Dishes made from fish cutlets (cutlets, zrazy, schnitzels, meatballs, dumplings), baked products, pies | 24 | hours |
| 46. Fish of all types and hot smoked rolls | 2 | days |
| 47. Multi-component products - solyanka, pilaf, snacks | 24 | hours |
| 48. Jelly products (jelly, brawn, jellied fish) | 24 | hours |
| Cooked fish products without heat treatment | ||
| 49. Products chopped from salted fish (pates, pastes) | 24 | hours |
| 50. Fish and seafood salads without dressing | 12 | hours |
| 51. Herring oil, caviar oil, krill oil, etc. | 24 | hours |
| 52. Caviar oil, krill oil, etc. | 24 | hours |
| 53. Boiled crayfish and shrimp | 12 | hours |
| 54. Structured products (“crab sticks”, etc.) | 2 | days |
| Culinary caviar products | ||
| 55. Heat-treated culinary products | 2 | days |
| 56. Multi-component dishes without heat treatment after mixing | 12 | hours at temp. from -2 to +2°С |
| 57. Fish pastes in polymer consumer containers | 2 | days |
Shelf life of milk and dairy products, cheeses | ||
| 58. Pasteurized milk, cream, whey, buttermilk: | ||
| in consumer packaging | 36 | hours |
| in flasks and tanks | 36 | hours |
| 59. Baked milk | 5 | days |
| 60. Liquid fermented milk products* | 3 | days |
| 61. Liquid fermented milk products enriched with bifidobacteria | 3 | days |
| 62. Natural kumiss (from mare’s milk), kumiss from cow’s milk | 2 | days |
| 63. Ryazhenka | 3 | days |
| 64. Sour cream and products based on it | 3 | days |
| 65. Cottage cheese and curd products | 3 | days |
| 66. Heat-treated cottage cheese and curd products | 5 | days |
| 67. Paste-like milk protein products | 3 | days |
| 68. Cottage cheese dishes - lazy dumplings, cottage cheese pancakes, cottage cheese fillings, pies | 24 | hours |
| 69. Casseroles, cottage cheese puddings | 2 | days |
| 70. Homemade cheese | 3 | days |
| 71. Cream cheeses | 5 | days |
| 72. Soft and brine cheeses without ripening | 5 | days |
| 73. Cheese butter | 2 | days |
Products of children's dairy kitchens | ||
| 74. Fermented milk products: | ||
| 74.1.Kefir: | ||
| kefir in bottles | 36 | hours |
| kefir in polymer container | 3 | days |
| other fermented milk products | 36 | hours |
| 75. Children's cottage cheese | 36 | hours |
| 76. Curd products | 24 | hours |
| 77. Sterilized products (adapted milk formulas, sterilized milk): | ||
| in bottles | 2 | days |
| in a sealed container | 10 | days |
| 78. Products for therapeutic and preventive nutrition on a fermented soy or non-dairy basis | 36 | hours |
Shelf life of vegetable products | ||
| Semi-finished products from vegetables and herbs | ||
| 79. Raw peeled sulfated potatoes | 2 | days |
| 80. Fresh peeled cabbage | 12 | hours |
| 81. Carrots, beets, onions, raw, peeled | 24 | hours |
| 82. Radishes, processed radishes, sliced | 12 | hours |
| 83. Parsley, processed celery | 24 | hours |
| 84. Processed green onions | 18 | hours |
| 85. Dill processed | 18 | hours |
| Culinary products | ||
| 86. Salads from raw vegetables and fruits: | ||
| without refilling | 18 | hours |
| with dressings (mayonnaise, sauces) | 12 | hours |
| 87. Salads made from raw vegetables with the addition of canned vegetables, eggs, etc.: | ||
| without refilling | 18 | hours |
| with dressings (mayonnaise, sauces) | 6 | hours |
| 88. Salads from pickled, salted, pickled vegetables | 36 | hours |
| 89. Salads and vinaigrettes from boiled vegetables: | ||
| without dressing and adding salted vegetables | 18 | hours |
| with dressings (mayonnaise, sauces) | 12 | hours |
| 90. Dishes of boiled, stewed, fried vegetables | 24 | hours |
| 91. Salads with the addition of meat, poultry, fish, smoked meats: | ||
| salads without dressing | 18 | hours |
| salads with dressings (mayonnaise, sauces) | 12 | hours |
| 92. Side dishes: | ||
| boiled rice, boiled pasta, mashed potatoes | 12 | hours |
| stewed vegetables | 18 | hours |
| boiled, fried potatoes | 18 | hours |
| 93. Sauces and dressings for main courses | 2 | days |
Confectionery and bakery products | ||
| Semi-finished test products | ||
| 94. Yeast dough for baked and fried pies, for kulebyak, pies and other flour products | 9 | hours |
| 95. Unleavened puff pastry for cakes, pastries and other flour products | 24 | hours |
| 96. Shortbread dough for cakes and pastries | 36 | hours |
| Culinary products | ||
| 97. Cheesecakes, juicers, half-open pies made from yeast dough: | ||
| with cottage cheese | 24 | hours |
| with jam and fruit fillings | 24 | hours |
| 98. Chebureks, belyashi, table pies, fried, baked, kulebyaki, pies (with meat, eggs, cottage cheese, cabbage, liver and other fillings] | 24 | hours |
| 99. Semolina, millet cutlets (cutlets) | 18 | hours |
| Floury confectionery products, sweet dishes, drinks | ||
| 100. Cakes and pastries: | ||
| cake without cream finishing, with protein-whipped, soufflé, butter, fruit and berry, fondant finishing | 3 | days |
| cake "Potato" | 36 | hours |
| cake with custard, with whipped cream, with curd and cream filling | 18 | hours |
| 101. Sponge rolls: | ||
| roll with creamy, fruit, candied fruit and poppy fillings | 36 | hours |
| roll with cottage cheese | 24 | hours |
| 102. Jelly, mousses | 24 | hours |
| 103. Creams | 24 | hours |
| 104. Whipped cream | 6 | hours |
| 105. Kvass produced by industry: | ||
| unpasteurized bread kvass | 2 | days |
| kvass "Moskovsky" | 3 | days |
| 106. Freshly squeezed fruit and vegetable juices | 2 | days |
Shelf life table for vegetables, fruits and herbs
| Greens, vegetables, fruits | Where to store | How to store, what to store in | Shelf life |
Shelf life of greens | |||
| Basil | Kitchen Cabinet | Stems in water, leaves in plastic | 1 Week |
| Green onions | Refrigerator shelf | In plastic packaging | 5 days |
| Cilantro | Refrigerator shelf | Stems in water, leaves in plastic | 1 Week |
| Parsley | Refrigerator shelf | Stems in water, leaves in plastic | 1 Week |
| Rosemary / Thyme | Refrigerator shelf | In plastic packaging | 2 weeks |
| Arugula | Refrigerator shelf | In plastic packaging | 10 days |
| Dill | Refrigerator shelf | In plastic packaging | 2 weeks |
Shelf life of fruits | |||
| Apple | Refrigerator drawer | Without packaging | 3 weeks |
| Avocado | Refrigerator shelf | Without packaging | 4 days |
| Avocado (half) | Refrigerator shelf | In plastic packaging | 1 day |
| Banana | Kitchen Cabinet | Without packaging | 3 days |
| Banana (half) | Refrigerator shelf | In foil | 1-2 days |
| Berries | Refrigerator drawer | Without packaging, in a container | 3-5 days |
| Citrus | — | Without packaging | 2 weeks |
| Citrus fruits (half) | — | In plastic packaging | 2-3 days |
| Grape | Refrigerator shelf | In a bag with holes | 1-2 weeks |
| Melon | Kitchen Cabinet | Without packaging | 5 days |
| Melon (half) | Refrigerator shelf | In plastic packaging | 7-10 days |
| Peach/Plum | Kitchen cabinet, ripe in the refrigerator | Without packaging | 5 days |
| Pear | Kitchen Cabinet | Without packaging | 4 days |
Shelf life of vegetables | |||
| Asparagus | Refrigerator shelf | In plastic packaging with roots in water | 4 days |
| Beet | Refrigerator shelf | In plastic packaging | 2 weeks |
| Pepper | Refrigerator shelf | In plastic packaging | 1 Week |
| Tomato | Kitchen Cabinet | Without packaging, in a container | 5 days |
| Broccoli | Refrigerator drawer | In plastic packaging | 5 days |
| Cabbage | Refrigerator drawer | In plastic packaging | 2 weeks |
| Carrot | Refrigerator drawer | In plastic packaging | 3 weeks |
| Cauliflower | Refrigerator drawer | In plastic packaging | 5 days |
| Celery | Refrigerator drawer | In foil | 2 weeks |
| Cucumber | Refrigerator drawer | In plastic packaging | 1 Week |
| Leafy vegetables | Refrigerator drawer | In a plastic bag with paper towel | 1 Week |
| Garlic | Pantry | Without packaging | 2 months |
| Green bean | Refrigerator drawer | In plastic packaging | 1 Week |
| Lettuce | Refrigerator drawer | In a plastic bag with paper towel | 5 days |
| Mushrooms | Refrigerator drawer | Paper bag | 3 days |
| Onion | Dark pantry | Without packaging | 1-2 months |
| Onion (half) | Refrigerator drawer | In plastic packaging | 3-5 days |
| Parsnip | Refrigerator drawer | In plastic packaging | 2 weeks |
| Radish | Refrigerator shelf | Paper bag | 2 weeks |
| Potato | Dark pantry | In plastic packaging | 1-2 months |
| Summer pumpkin | Refrigerator drawer | In plastic packaging | 5 days |
| winter pumpkin | Dark pantry | Plastic container | 1 month |
| Pumpkin (half) | Refrigerator drawer | In foil | 2-3 weeks |
| Green salad | Refrigerator drawer | Plastic container | 10 days |
Expiration dates of NEW YEAR'S TABLE
You served a wonderful dinner on the evening of December 31st. What to do next with food if you haven’t eaten everything by morning? How long can food last in the refrigerator?
| New Year's dish | Best before date | A comment |
| Herring under a Fur Coat | 12 hours | eat on January 1st before lunch |
| Fried meat (pork, beef) | 36 hours | finish before lunch on January 2 |
| Aspic | 12 hours | eat on the morning of January 1 |
| Smoked chicken | 72 hours | finish until the evening of January 3 |
| Hot poultry | 48 hours | eat on January 2 before dinner |
| Fish (fried, stewed, baked) | 36 hours | finish before lunch on January 2 |
| Jellied fish | 24 hours | eat on January 1st before dinner |
| Salads (livier, vinaigrette) dressed with sauce | 12 hours | eat on January 1st before lunch |
| Salads (livier, vinaigrette) not dressed with sauce | 18 hours | eat on January 1st before dinner |
| Cutlets, pilaf, pate | 24 hours | finish eating on January 1 |
| Red caviar (in an opened jar) | 5 days | finish until the evening of January 5 |
| Pickles (in an open jar) | 36 hours | finish before lunch on January 3rd |
| Second course of meat with vegetables | 18 hours | eat on January 1st before dinner |
| Salted fish (red, herring) | 48 hours | finish until the evening of January 2 |
| JUICE (in opened package) | 48 hours | finish it before the evening of January 2 |
| CAKE (cut) | 18 hours | eat on January 1st before dinner |
Main source of information: Sanitary and epidemiological rules and regulations SanPiN 2.3.2.1324-03
Shelf life of non-perishable products
Products with a long shelf life are products that, over a long period of time, without observing temperature conditions, can correspond to their consumer qualities.
Dry products retain their specified shelf life even after the packaging has been damaged.
The storage time for canned food is set from the date of completion of the technological process until the container is opened.
Non-perishable products include these products:
- Flour and dry flour products
- Sugar, salt, tea
- Dried vegetables and fruits
- Herbs, spices, vinegar
- Alcohol products
- Canned food in jars
Preservation of taste and nutritional qualities of non-perishable products is determined by correct storage conditions. Products that do not have an expiration date are not presented in the unified register of food products, indicating their expiration date.
What difficulties may you encounter if you have lost your receipt and the product you purchased is of poor quality or damaged?
What is a technically complex product and how to return it? Read about this and much more here.
Document storage rules
The rules for storing documents are determined by organizations and individual entrepreneurs independently. They are not strictly regulated. As a rule, in small companies, documents are stored in the accounting department in locked safes.
Documents can also be stored electronically. In this case, electronic documents must be certified using an electronic digital signature. This is stated, in particular, in the letter of the Ministry of Finance dated July 24, 2008 No. 03-02-07/1-314.
If the volume of paper document flow does not allow storing documents in the accounting department, a special room is equipped for storage - an archive. At the same time, it is necessary to equip such a room, guided by the Basic Rules for the Operation of Archives of Organizations, approved by the Decision of the Board of Rosarkhiv dated 02/06/2002.
Archives should be located in isolated rooms. The premises must be fire safe, guaranteed against flooding, and have an emergency exit. There should be no gas or water-carrying main pipelines in the premises.
Storing documents in rooms without windows is permitted if there is natural or artificial ventilation in the storage facility.
It is not allowed to store documents in dilapidated, damp, unheated premises that do not meet sanitary and hygienic requirements, as well as premises occupied by public catering services and food warehouses (clause 4.2 of the Basic Rules for the Operation of Organizational Archives).
Documents of permanent, temporary (over 10 years) storage, as well as personnel documents are sent to the organization’s archive. Documents of temporary storage with storage periods of up to 10 years are, as a rule, not subject to transfer to the archive. They are stored in accounting departments and must be destroyed upon expiration of the storage period.
To store a large number of documents, it is possible to enter into paid agreements with third-party archival companies.
How are they different?
The listed terms are an integral characteristic of a particular product. However, in practice they mean different quality parameters. Namely:
- Service is the use of products for their intended purpose. For a certain time, the manufacturer is responsible for the quality of the products sold to the buyer. The latter is obliged to comply with the operating parameters brought to his attention.
- Suitability is the product’s compliance with safe consumption standards. After the period has expired, the sale of the product and its use are prohibited.
- Warranty is an obligation to eliminate product defects within a certain time. The manufacturer takes it upon himself on his own initiative (not established by law).
Attention: for some types of products, service dates are set depending on the season. For example, the countdown for winter boots starts with the onset of the cold period.
Differences
The difference between the warranty period and the expiration date is characterized by the following provisions:
- GS refers to the entire line of goods sold by food trading enterprises, SG refers to food products;
- the end of the SG determines that the product has become dangerous and cannot be used for its intended purpose, but the SG - the buyer is only informed about the end of the manufacturer’s responsibility for the product;
- the GS period is set by the manufacturer or the enterprise selling the product, while the SG is only the manufacturer;
- The sale of products is prohibited if the SG is not defined, but it is on the list of goods that are necessarily limited in terms of shelf life.
The difference between shelf life and shelf life can be seen using the example of one of the most common healthy products - honey. The entire population of the country probably knows what honey is.
The regulatory acts of its SG are defined as 12 months. During this period, it has little changing consistency, density and taste. At the end of the SG, processes begin to occur that change the external characteristics and taste of the product. At the same time, it does not cease to be of high quality, and can also be eaten. Even with changed characteristics, it can be stored further, maintaining its beneficial properties. Thus, for certain types of products, GS and SG do not have equal importance.
