Consumer Rights

As habitual, I turned to the online edition of my native country’s newspaper, for local news . While reading,I was drawn towards an article which I thought was creditable.It was a worthy act taken by Sri lanka's Health Ministry ,who has directed food manufacturers throughout the nation to take care when printing the date of production,the date of expiry and the ingredients used on the food and drink labels, which will be in effect from July.
From now on, manufacturers will have to strictly abide by the new regulations imposed by the Ministry when selling their manufactured goods.

The Health Ministry has also cautioned the public to keep vigilant on the sale of unhygienic and outdated canned food items and various soft drink products sold by supermarkets, groceries and other food outlets. This move will in fact make the consumers more watchful of what they purchase from the supermarkets or the grocers.They should take extra care to always check labels for the production and expiry dates. In addition,they must make it a point to read the labeled ingredients ,so that they will know if that particular product is good or harmful to them..They now have the right to report to relevant authorities any sale of unhygienic or outdated food stuffs in the supermarket. This step will also make the traders think twice about selling cheap and unhygenic food items with the intent of making quick cash.The risk of falling sick eating food which is outdated or unhygienic,is on a greater altitude, so consumers too should treat this warning as an eye opener .

A Walk Down Memory Lane

Once in a while I  take a walk down memory lane. And whilst on the way,gather some  bits and pieces of my childhood. A few moments ago ,I ventured on this nostalgic journey  again. I stopped  for a moment, when I envisaged my childhood home, where I had spent  great many years of happy times with my family, I mentally zoomed  in to the dining hall,where my large family used to  gather during  mealtimes.Whisperings, followed by loud laughter would  erupt throughout the hallway, which would quickly   be silenced by the food that would soon be laid on the table. Mother would painstakingly prepare part of the breakfast while  my siblings and I would wait impatiently around the breakfast table for Father, who would bring the main part of the breakfast,the freshly baked bread from the Baker, which we all took delight in eating, with the coconut “sambol” ( chutney ) Mother made. Even though we had a choice for breakfast, we always tried to eat Mother’s favorite. With stinging eyes and  runny nose, my whole body would be encircled with a burning sensation. I wouldn’t give up!! Hastily gulping water in between each morsel, I would fan myself with the morning newspaper, to cool that sweltering in me and pretend that everything was just fine. I would n’t dislodge from the breakfast table till I finished the last mouthful of that spicy coconut sambol, which was a mixture of scrapped coconut, red chilly ,green chilly and chopped onions sprinkled with lemon juice and salt. This was my mother’s  specialty! A simple dish made with great labour of love.

Goodness me! Now I have  partially  regained my composure from my reminiscence  and still in the  state of  drooling, walk toward the kitchen looking for scrap, crumb and pieces of ingredients to prepare my favourite  breakfast dish.