For large- or factory-scale manufacturing, consumers have Good Manufacturing Practice or GMP as a system to ensure that products they buy are consistently produced and controlled according to quality standards. But for small-scale production, Patchara said that in Thailand, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has enforced another quality-control protocol called Primary GMP, which is quite similar to factory-scale GMP but less serious in practice. Both forms of GMP look to ensure that six manufacturing aspects – production buildings, equipment, production process, sanitation, maintenance and production staff – are up to hygiene and safety standards.
The coordinator of the Foundation for Consumers added that juice drinks that are manufactured in factories or by large-scale industry are already required by law to be properly labelled and seek the FDA certification. But the problem here is juice that is made and sold by small-scale vendors, which is not licensed. These products, even though sold on the street, are subject to control by the Primary GMP standard, but Patchara is not certain how strictly the FDA has implemented the quality-assurance approach.
“Manufacturers might take advantage of this legal loophole,” he added. “They might produce juice drinks that are not properly labelled and supply them to vendors. Vendors might claim these are their own products [which will then be loosely controlled because they are small-scale production] but in fact they receive them from big producers.
“Regardless, whoever does not do it right damages the image of Thailand’s street foods and products.”
Speaking of adverse health impacts from fake fruit juice, Pornrat does not want consumers to be overly alarmed. He said fake fruit juice is less likely to cause short-term health consequences given the citric acid content of fruit juices is able to lessen the proliferation of germs to a certain extent. Long-term impacts, nonetheless, are likely to stem from the fruit that might be loaded with pesticides or colouring additives that might carry toxic heavy metals and water that might be of poor quality.
Pornrat, however, is not convinced that producers have added saccharin – a type of artificial sweetener widely used in preserved fruits – to bottled fruit juice as speculated.
“Considering the cost of sugar which is not really high, I don’t think vendors would find saccharin preferable,” Pornrat said. “Also, saccharin has a sharp taste and therefore will make it difficult for vendors to adjust the flavour of the juice so that people like it.”
For safety, Pornrat suggested that consumers only buy fruit juice from vendors or carts they are familiar with.
“Consumers need to keep a watchful eye on people who sell them food and drink,” she advised. “Check if they and their products look clean, how they wear their hair, things like that.” If worse comes to worst, according to Patchara, street food licensing might be a good way to go.
“If consumer confidence is of top priority, licensing might be necessary,” she noted. “When the time comes, all foods should be required to be labelled and stated by whom and when they were manufactured. Of course, this will increase the production cost but it will probably help.”