Pol Says Supermarkets Are Repackaging Dated Meat

Millions of meat-eating New Yorkers are getting their nutrition from cuts of sirloin and prime rib that has lived well past its prime, according to State Senator Carl Kruger, who is demanding an end to the "nauseating supermarket surprise that legally allows stores to foist expired meats on unknowing consumers" who think they’re paying for a fresh product.

The Albany legislator, whose district includes Canarsie, Marine Park, Mill Basin and Georgetown, said he plans to shortly introduce a bill to end this practice. "We will ask for hearings on the bill and require the industry to testify," added Senator Kruger. "Let them explain this repugnant practice."

Unlike many other states, New York has no laws governing exactly how long meats may remain on supermarket shelves. Therefore, according to Kruger, "It has become common practice for supermarkets to package meats with one expiration date, then repackage the same meat with a different date if it still looks decent enough to sell when the first date has come and gone."

"Even more alarming are the numerous instances where stores have taken expired meat that looks ‘iffy,’ like a steak, for instance and repackaged it as chopped meat figuring that consumers wouldn’t notice," he added

Kruger said his office has been bombarded with complaints from constituents furious that supermarkets, not the government, have the ultimate power to decide when meat is too old to sell.

"The health risks are obvious, especially when a variety of people — such as senior citizens, young children, or immune-suppressed individuals — can suffer lethal consequences from E-coli, salmonella and other food-borne illnesses," said Senator Kruger.

"If this practice continues in New York, we’ll need to stick warning labels on our meat that read ‘Eat at your own risk,’ the Albany legislator said.

A better alternative, said the senator, would be a law that "sets in stone" the required standards for the packaging of meats and demands "strictly adhered-to expiration dates that inspire confidence, not fear, from the unwitting consumer."

"People often stop me on the street and say, ‘You know, there ought to be a law...’ In this case, however, I believe the vast majority of people would be shocked and sickened by the fact that there isn’t a law on the books that prevents supermarkets from selling meats that should be dead and buried," said Senator Kruger.

"This is the only business I know of where expired really doesn’t mean expired," he said. "For evidence of reincarnation, just visit your local supermarket’s meat aisle."

In an article in Tuesday’s Daily News, Michael Rosen, vice president for the New York Food Industry Alliance, which represents 21,000 state food stores, said the charges were "wild," according to the News, which quoted Rosen as saying Kruger "should sit down with supermarket operators before hurling wild charges." He said the city’s food-dating law covers the handling and storage of perishable products.