Food products with labels in foreign languages will be banned.
The Independent Consumer and Competition Commission (ICCC) has taken steps to further address food labelling and product safety in PNG, banning non-English labeled products.
The decision to impose an interim ban on food products labeling, under its consumer protection division, is to ensure consumers have access to basic product information.
The 18-month interim ban on non-English labelled food products was set since March 31, 2016, and will run until September 17, 2017.
However, since then, certain goods have been picked from the shelves and were placed for awareness today at the ICCC head office at the Garden City building, Port Moresby, to warn shops around the country on the banning of such goods.
ICCC commissioner and CEO Paulus Ain today urged the public, during a media conference, to be careful when buying products from shops that have non-English labels. We do not know the contents of the sealed goods because they are written in a foreign language.
“Certain products can be harmful to consumers if not policed against set standards and most developed countries have stringent requirements and standards for consumer goods, which are recognised internationally by manufacturers and suppliers of goods,” Ain said.
However, not all countries have stringent requirements and standards, and PNG is one of them. In the absence of a country–specific standard, the universal practice is set for consumers for products that best suit their needs.
Ain added that the ban requires that all food products must have their labels written in English and not foreign languages that consumers will not understand.
The ICCC team will carry out the awareness to the provincial level starting next week. They will make sure the first approach of creating awareness is made to the shop owners.
After the first approach, the ICCC will not hesitate to prosecute any businesses selling banned products.
This is to ensure the consumers are protected and businesses abide by the law.