Gyeonggi Special Judicial Police Detect 45 Illegal Cases Including Expired Food Products Ahead of Chuseok

Photo of the crackdown on products past their consumption date by the Gyeonggi-do Special Judicial Police Unit

Gyeonggi Province has cracked down on food manufacturing, processing, and sales businesses that violated related laws by storing products past their expiration dates or failing to comply with preservation standards ahead of the Chuseok holiday.

The Gyeonggi Province Special Judicial Police announced on the 12th that they conducted an intensive investigation over three weeks from August 19 to September 6 targeting 360 food manufacturing, processing, and instant sales manufacturing and processing businesses, as well as livestock product (processed) sales companies within the province, uncovering 45 illegal activities.

The violations detected include ▲ storing products past their expiration dates (15 cases) ▲ violation of preservation standards (5 cases) ▲ violations of labeling standards (10 cases) ▲ failure to report changes in business area (7 cases) ▲ failure to perform mandatory self-quality inspections (4 cases), among others.

Storing products past their expiration dates and failing to conduct self-quality inspections (Food Sanitation Act), violating livestock product preservation standards (Livestock Products Sanitary Control Act), and failing to display required labeling (Food Labeling and Advertising Act) are punishable by imprisonment of up to three years or fines up to 30 million KRW.

Additionally, failure to report changes in business area to the competent authority is subject to imprisonment of up to five years or fines up to 50 million KRW under the Food Sanitation Act.

Ki Do, head of the Gyeonggi Province Special Judicial Police, stated, "We will continue to do our best to ensure that residents can consume safe and healthy Chuseok seasonal foods. In particular, to prevent violations caused by negligence or carelessness, we plan to provide business owners with type-specific guidance documents at their workplaces to support lawful operation by item."

Meanwhile, since 2021, the Special Judicial Police have conducted annual investigations into illegal activities at Chuseok seasonal food processing and sales businesses, uncovering 74 cases in 2021, 66 cases in 2022, 48 cases in 2023, and 45 cases in 2024.