Analyses by the Food and Veterinary Agency (FVA) have revealed that some food operators are deliberately misleading consumers, selling products whose composition does not correspond to what is stated on the declaration. The largest deviations were observed in dairy and meat products, where the presence of prohibited ingredients such as vegetable fats was determined.
FVA representative Svetlana Kolarikj in an interview with TV Telma explained that during March, upon the order of the director of the Agency, intensified inspections were carried out on the market in Skopje.
The focus of the inspections was the quality and identity of the products, i.e. whether the composition inside the packaging corresponds to the declaration. In this control cycle, a total of 91 samples were taken from retail outlets in Skopje, of which:
- 45 samples of dairy products and milk;
- 46 samples of meat products (dried meat products).
“In the dairy products section, the analysis showed the presence of vegetable fat. This is strictly prohibited in products such as milk, cheese, cottage cheese, sour cream and butter, because they have a guaranteed name and it is known exactly what their composition should be,” said Kolarikj.
The FVA representative adds that the initial results for meat products are even more worrying, because the deviations from the prescribed quality are much greater compared to dairy products.
