Sardines from China refused entry

The Government Analyst –Food and Drug Department (GA-FDD) has refused entry to 1700 cases of ‘Dost’ sardine imported from the Peoples Republic of  China. This was done in collaboration with the Guyana Revenue Authority -Customs Department.

Samples of the imported items were retrieved by Inspectors of the GA-FDD for examination on the 29^th November 2016, a statement from the Department said.

Upon examination, the GA-FDD said it was revealed that the sardines were manufactured on the 1^st August 2014 (coded information on tins) and not on the 1st June 2016 as stated on the labels, the tins were already rusting, the Free Sale/Health Certificate from China FDA was inconsistent with those usually presented to the Department and the exact name and address of the manufacturer were not stated on the labels.

The above observances violate the Food and Drug Regulations. It was noted, however, that those were only some of the reasons that influenced the Department’s decision.

Based on the Inspector’s report and according to the Laws of Guyana Food and Drug Act Chapter 34:03 section 22 (II) and the Food and Drug Regulation 1977 regulation 11, consent to grant entry of the product into the country for consumers to use was not granted and the Head of the Customs Department and the Importer were officially notified as prescribed for in the law.

The Department will now furnish a copy of the inconsistent Free Sale Certificate, which was used to facilitate the shipment into Guyana with our sister regulatory agency of the People’s Republic of China.

In addition, the name and address of the exporter and the importer will be provided in an attempt to prevent future shipment of substandard foods being exported to Guyana from China.

The Department is advising consumers to pay close attention to labels for dates, addresses, country of origin, instruction for storage, the language (must be in English) and the condition of containers when purchasing items of food at all times.

The Department has pledged to continue working with all stakeholders to ensure substandard items of foods, drugs cosmetics and medical devices are prevented from being released on our local market.