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Be a
Wise Consumer
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How many
times have you felt cheated when you came from the market? How many times
have you wished that you could make a complaint but did not know how and
to whom?
Your answer probably would be, ‘Yes, many times.” Most of us consumers
have been cheated some time or the other while making a purchase. Many of
us wish that we had more knowledge that would help us become wiser
consumers. |
Do we
go on in this state of ignorance? Certainly not. We can and need
to educate ourselves on our rights and responsibilities as consumers.
As consumers, we first need to be aware of all the different products
available in the market. You probably know some or most of them.
I today’s scenario, it may not be possible to know all the products
that exits, but what is more important is to be aware of the products
that could be useful to you. If you are a working mother, you may
be interested in different ready-mixes or masalas that make your
job easier. If you are at home, you would probably be interested
in some other products. So keep your eyes an ears open, to increase
your knowledge of the many choices available to you today.
Apart from the many products that exist,
there are many brands for each
type of category. Cooking oils, for instance. There are oils made from
different sources like groundnut, sunflower and various other seeds. In
each type, both the refined and filtered varieties are available.
You may ask yourself, “If there is so much to know, where do I start? What
are the essentials that I need to know that would help me make better
purchases?
All food manufacturers require a license. The prevention of Food
Adulteration Act (PFA) stipulates the information that is to be given on every food product
that is above a certain minimum weight. This information could be used by
you while making your purchases.
To start with, look out for the following details on the packaging.
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The date of manufacture. This gives you an idea of when the product was
manufactures and is of particular importance for ready-to eat and canned
foods. In most cases, the month of manufacture is stated. For some
products the date of packing may be given. The date of manufacture does
not have to be printed on fast moving perishable goods like milk, butter
and ice-cream.
Expiry date is another important piece of information to consider when
buying a food product. However, under the PFA Act, it is not mandatory for
the manufacturer to print the expiry date on the packaging. This provision
is currently under consideration and is, likely to be incorporated under
the act in the near future.
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Says S.J Mehta, Joint Commissioner Food, FDA
Maharashra, “the PFA Act is being amended to include the printing of the
expiry date on all food products.”
In Europe and America, the scenario is quite different. It is mandatory
for all perishable commodities to have the date of expiry clearly visible
on its label. Every one customarily checks that expiry date before buying
any item, making rough calculations of the shelf life of he product.
Neither the retauiler, nor the dealer there, would stock anything which
has a current expiry date. In India, the expiry date rule only applies to
pharmaceutical drugs. In all other commodities, the mention of it is not
mandatory. This could e one of the major reasons why Indian food products
are not popular in EEC markets. The risk of contamination and staleness is
high. A few manufacturers, particularly multinationals, print ‘best before
date’ on their products. This is another way of stating the expiry date.
You may have noticed that canned and bottled food products like jams,
pickles, sauces and jellies have the letters FPO and a number printed on
them. FPO stands for Fruits Product Order and is the act that governs the
manufacture and packing of fruit products. Every licensed fruit product
will have the FPO number printed on its label.
Another important factor for any food product is the ingredients used in
it. Every packaged food product has to have an ingredient list on its
label. The ingredients are mentioned in descending order of quantity. The
ingredient list for a soup powder would be as follows – dehydrated
vegetables, salt, corn flour, etc. This means that dehydrated vegetables
are the largest item, by weight in the soup powder. The ingredient list is
of particular importance to those who cannot eat certain foods like eggs,
for example.
The PFA Act stipulates the type and quantity of flavours and colours that
can be used in food products. The label of every food product must mention
that it contains ‘permitted colours and flavours’. The FDA regularly
checks products for the type and quantity of colours and flavours sued.
How do we know the quality of ingredients that go into the product?
We can only depend on the reputation of the manufactures. In most
cases, it is preferable to buy a product of a known or reputed manufactures
rather that that of an unknown one. The former is likely to have
undertaken quality checks than his smaller counterpart. Price is
another important parameter that we need to check when buying a
food product, particularly a high value one,. Like oil. In today’s
competitive scenario, prices may not differ too much between brands
but we still need to make comparisons to satisfy ourselves.
The price of a product is stated as MRP (incl. of all taxes). This
is an all-inclusive price. A retailer can charge you a lower price
but not more than the MRP that is printed on the product. The packaging
act specifies the various sizes in which products can be packages
and sold. Some manufactures charge a higher price by selling in
a non-standard pack size. Any product that is of a different size
needs to mention the unit price so that the consumer can make her
own comparisons.
Packaging is another important element of a product. One of the important
functions of packaging is to protect a product. Avoid buying or refuse to
accept a products with a soiled or damaged packaging as the product it
contains may have been pilfered or
contaminated. You may choose to accept a product with damaged packaging
only if you are sure that the product inside is unaffected by the damage
to its packaging.
Having seen what we need to know as a consumer, we also need to know the
procedure to be followed to make a complaint. Vanmana Manjure, a consumer
rights activist and panelist of the Consumer Disputes and Redressed Forum
(CDRF), an arbitrating body, elaborates on the procedure. “When a consumer
is dissatisfied with a product, he should dispatch an acknowledgement due
registered letter to the, marketing division of the concerned company. If
the matter is very serious, the consumer can send the letter to the MDS of
the company too. Send in details of your complaint, along with the mention
of the shop from where you purchased the products, the details about the
packaging and also what kind of compensation you are seeking.”
The penalties on the company will depend on the nature of the consumers
complaint. If the consumer is seeking a replacement of the product or a
money-back response, the company will have to comply. In case of
money-back, the amount will be refunded along with 18 per cent interest.
If the company does not respond, the consumer will have to take
his grievance to the Consumer Guidance
Society of India (CGSI) or in Mumbai, to the Mumbai Grahak
Panchayat. The CGSI is based in Mumbai and has branches in the following
cities - Calicut, Goa, Hyderabad, Kottayam, Pune, Trichur and Udaipur.
If the need arises you can contact their local office. These organizations
will make a representation to the company concerned , on behalf
of the consumer. If the company fails to respond, then through these
bodies, the consumer can approach the CDRF which will hold a Consumer
Court, summoning all parties involved and arbitrate on the issue.
In the event of any complaint, all the costs of litigation have
to be borne by the company. The consumer is not charged anything.”
Vijay Jathan, Hon Gen Secretary of the CGSI, calls the process “righting a
wrong’. You as a consumer, have been wronged and now it has to be set
right.”
Every consumer should be aware of his or her rights and responsibilities
and should exercise them accordingly. Next time you have a grievance, act
immediately and refuse to be short changed. If the country requires an
active consumer movement it will be effective only through vigilant
consumers.
Contributed By : Maria Peres I have a
Certificate of Competence from the Writers Bureau and have published
articles in The Education Times and a couple of magazines for women. I
have over 15 years of experience as a Marketing professional and have
worked in the FMCG sector, in Market Research and in the Development
sector in India.
peres_maria@yahoo.com
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