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Do cigarettes have a shelf life?
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The national standard does not stipulate that cigarettes can be marked with a shelf life-do cigarettes have a shelf life?
Two domestic cigarette factories and CR Vanguard supermarkets were brought to court by Xiao Wenquan, a lawyer of Guangdong Zhenghan Law Firm, because the cigarettes produced and sold did not indicate the shelf life. A few days ago, the Luohu District Court heard the case, and the court rejected the prosecution because it did not fall within the scope of civil litigation adjustment.
-Buying cigarettes triggers a lawsuit
Xiao Wenquan said in court that at the end of 5438+ 10 this year, he bought a white sand cigarette and a cloud cigarette in Cuizhu Store of Wanjia Supermarket, and found that there was no address, production date and shelf life indicated in Chinese on the package. He believes that there are three no products, which violates the relevant provisions of the Product Quality Law and the Consumer Protection Law. So he took Changsha Cigarette Factory, Kunming Cigarette Factory and CR Vanguard Supermarket Co., Ltd. to court, requesting the court to order the two factories to indicate the shelf life and other contents on the cigarette packaging, and the three defendants jointly compensated their transportation expenses by 60? br & gt
-cigarette factory supermarket to state their views.
Changsha Cigarette Factory believes that cigarettes are not general consumer goods, and their packaging is divided into boxes, strips and boxes, which have corresponding national standards. The manufacturer has marked the date and address of production on the cigarette packaging box, and the main pattern, registration mark, tar content and warning are marked on the box packaging. According to international practice and national standards, manufacturers do not need to mark the shelf life on the box packaging. In addition, marking the production date on the cigarette case belongs to the jurisdiction of the administrative department, and Xiao is not qualified to perform administrative functions. If the cigarette factory is at fault, he can complain to the administrative department instead of bringing a civil lawsuit.
CR Vanguard Supermarket Co., Ltd. believes that cigarettes are special commodities, and supermarkets are qualified to sell cigarettes, which meet the relevant national quality standards.
-Public interest litigation was affirmed.
Associate Professor Zhang of Shenzhen University Law School said: Most people know that there is no expiration date on cigarettes, but not many people are serious. Previously, two consumers in Nanjing and Anhui filed lawsuits, but both lost. Xiao Wenquan's lawsuit is the first time in Guangdong Province. Through such public interest litigation, consumers and cigarette factories are concerned, which is the significance of litigation. Xiao Wenquan said after the trial that as a consumer and lawyer, he has the responsibility and obligation to safeguard the dignity of the law. Although he lost the lawsuit, he believes that there will be a production date and shelf life on cigarette packaging in the future.
Ms. Liang of Shenzhen Futian Consumer Council believes that according to the definition of food in the Food Hygiene Law, cigarettes belong to the category of food and should be marked with shelf life; However, cigarettes are a special commodity, and the national standard does not stipulate the shelf life. Nevertheless, manufacturers should also print the production date on the outer packaging of cigarettes, which is also a maintenance of consumers' right to know.
She suggested that consumers go to some fast-moving shops when buying cigarettes, and buy a small amount at a time to avoid long-term storage; If there is mildew, you can ask the merchant to return it.
At one time, dozens of "smokers" from all over Shanxi Province called reporters and asked, "Why don't cigarettes have a production date and a shelf life? Who can solve this problem? " Journalists who have been smoking for more than 10 years have rummaged through hundreds of kinds of cigarette cases collected by friends at home and abroad. Sure enough, they found that the production date and shelf life were not marked, so the reporters had to consult tobacco experts with the same questions.
Cigarettes: there is a "date of birth" but no "life limit"
"Cigarettes have a production date, but they don't look good." According to a senior technician of Taiyuan Cigarette Factory, when regular cigarettes leave the factory, the specific production date will be clearly marked on the big packaging box and product certificate. However, on every cigarette and box, most manufacturers have not clearly marked it. Some cigarette manufacturers may have some invisible spray printing numbers on the outer packaging of cigarette cases, mainly the manufacturer's anti-counterfeiting password; Some manufacturers will stamp steel seals on cigarette cases, and these steel seals will have some production date information, including production month, production machine number, batch number and so on. These labels have different forms and obscure expressions, and their meanings are beyond the ordinary people's comprehension. The national tobacco authorities have no uniform regulations in this regard. It can be said that manufacturers, operators and quality supervision and monitoring professionals in all aspects of the tobacco industry generally know the specific production date of cigarettes, but only smokers as consumers cannot know. Commodities used for consumption generally have a shelf life, and cigarettes are no exception, but the fact is that at present, no brand of cigarettes in China will indicate the shelf life, and cigarettes in many foreign countries do not indicate the shelf life.
Why do cigarettes have no shelf life?
Everyone knows that smoking is harmful to health. If you smoke moldy and deteriorated cigarettes, it will undoubtedly make things worse. In that case, why not indicate the production date and shelf life on each pack of cigarettes? The reporter interviewed the departments of cigarette production, circulation and supervision. Roughly summed up two reasons.
The statement about the date of cigarette production is "no need to indicate". The manufacturer said: the general products can be sold within half a year, and the production date has been marked on each box when the products leave the factory. Dealers believe that most cigarettes are in and out now, and there will be no long-term backlog, and they also know the production date of each kind of cigarettes. But the reporter asked some tobacco dealers in Taiyuan whether they would tell consumers the production date of cigarettes. They replied that some people would ask about the authenticity of cigarettes, but few people wanted to know the date of production.
The saying about the shelf life of cigarettes is "the situation is complicated and there is no standard" or "the labeling is meaningless". The reporter visited several cigarette production enterprises. The technicians of these enterprises generally believe that cigarettes are a very complicated product, and there are many processes from the purchase of tobacco leaves to the manufacture of finished cigarettes. Due to different storage environments, the shelf life varies greatly. It can be stored in dry environment for 2 or 3 years, but it can't be stored in bad environment 1 year. In the south and north of China, the same brand may have different shelf life. For example, in a place with high temperature and humidity, after only one summer, the dry smoke will be alcoholized and absorb enough water, and it will easily become moldy when it changes; In dry and cold areas, the shelf life of cigarettes can be as long as several years. The differences caused by these factors are generally not obvious. The person in charge of the State Tobacco Monopoly Bureau once explained to the media: As far as cigarettes are concerned, although they are classified as food at home and abroad, they are obviously different from ordinary foods. It is not directly imported and must be consumed by burning tobacco. Based on this particularity, any brand of cigarettes, not only in China, but also internationally, does not indicate the shelf life. The harm of cigarettes to health is not determined by time. Its harmfulness has been clearly written on the box. It exists regardless of time, so it is meaningless to mark the shelf life. Ma, a lawyer in Taiyuan who has been smoking for many years, said that there is no doubt that there will be some slight harm to the human body after the deterioration of cigarettes, but it is not easy to monitor and quantify the extent and consequences, so the formulation of the shelf life lacks sufficient and reasonable basis. However, this cannot be a sufficient reason why cigarettes do not indicate the expiration date.
Legal circles question the "convention" of tobacco industry
It seems to be the practice in this special industry that cigarettes are not marked with shelf life and production date. However, as the balance of interests between "economic man" manufacturers and "natural person" consumers, the legal profession believes that trade laws and regulations can't replace laws, and cigarette consumers can't be in a state of serious information asymmetry forever, doing nothing in the face of trade laws and regulations and giving up their rights.
Lawyer Ma of Shanxi Hengshuai Law Firm believes that legally speaking, any product should have a shelf life, because it is purposefully processed by human beings to meet specific needs. When any product meets some human needs, there is a time limit for its effectiveness to last and play. With the expiration of this time limit, the effectiveness will be attenuated or lost, but the length of time is different.
Lawyer Ma cited the existing laws in China to prove his point.
Article 1 of the Tobacco Monopoly Law clearly stipulates "improving the quality of tobacco products and safeguarding the interests of consumers". Paragraph 2 of Article 15 of the Product Quality Law stipulates that "the product name, manufacturer name and address shall be marked in Chinese"; The fourth paragraph stipulates that "products with restricted use shall be marked with the production date, safe use period or expiration date". Article 8 of the Law on the Protection of Consumers' Rights and Interests stipulates: "Consumers have the right to know the true situation of the goods they buy or use or the services they receive. Consumers have the right to ask business operators to provide relevant information such as price, place of origin, main ingredients, production date, expiration date, instruction manual and so on according to different conditions of goods or services. " Article 18 clearly stipulates: "if an operator finds that the goods or services provided by him are seriously defective, even if he uses the goods or accepts the services correctly, it may still cause harm to personal and property safety, he shall immediately report to the relevant administrative department and inform consumers, and take measures to prevent the occurrence of harm." Article 2 1 of the Food Hygiene Law stipulates: product name, place of origin, name of manufacturer, production date, main ingredients, shelf life, eating or using method, etc. It must be indicated on the packaging label or product manual according to different products. Moreover, the food sold in the domestic market must have a Chinese logo.
"When the cigarettes in the cigarette factory are put into storage, what is the inventory environment, how long has the inventory been kept, and has it deteriorated? For these problems, consumers are neither experts nor informed, and the information of buyers and sellers is in a serious asymmetric state. " Professor Zhao Liming from the Law School of Shanxi University of Finance and Economics believes that although the Tobacco Monopoly Law does not require cigarette manufacturers to indicate the production date and shelf life on the outer packaging of cigarettes they produce, the law cannot exempt tobacco manufacturers from the responsibility and obligation for product quality. According to the Product Quality Law, the Food Hygiene Law and the Consumer Protection Law, cigarette manufacturers should indicate the production date and shelf life on their cigarette packaging.
Professor Zhao Limin further analyzed that an industry basic law, such as China's Tobacco Monopoly Law, should cover the basic issues of tobacco industry and tobacco consumption as far as possible, but this is not the case. This is also related to the legislative system. The trade law is drafted by the trade management department and confirmed or passed by the legislature. In the early stage of legislation, the opinions of other experts and consumers may be less listened to. In terms of legislative technology, we can consider the connection between relevant laws. The Tobacco Monopoly Law has no vague provisions and can be understood by combining the Product Quality Law, the Food Hygiene Law and the Consumer Protection Law.
In fact, in the face of the tobacco industry, people have long questioned it by law and put it into action to challenge it. On the morning of August 6th, 2002, Liu Hesheng, a lawyer from Anhui Zheng Gang Law Firm, bought a cigarette made in Anhui in Hefei. Liu Hesheng's lawyer pointed out that the date of manufacture, shelf life and address were not indicated on the outer packaging of cigarettes, which obviously violated the relevant provisions of the Product Quality Law, the Food Hygiene Law and the Consumer Protection Law. Therefore, Liu Hesheng filed a complaint against the cigarette factory and the shopping mall that sold cigarettes to it, requesting the court to award the two defendants compensation of RMB 1 yuan, transportation expenses and lost time in accordance with relevant laws and regulations. In the end, this "one-dollar lawsuit" lost in the second instance. Lawyer Liu Hesheng insists that in the modern market economy environment, there should not be a situation where the four major laws can't control a pack of cigarettes. This not only undermines the seriousness of the law, but also ignores the legitimate rights and interests of consumers.
Suggestion: Why not change the regulations of the tobacco industry?
Rules are formed for a long time and have relative stability; But the rules can't be fixed, we must keep pace with the times, especially for those outdated stereotypes, we must be brave in innovation.
The fact that the plane was delayed and the passengers were compensated is very telling. The earliest plane was delayed, so passengers had to wait in the waiting hall while listening to the announcement of the airport announcer. With the breaking of the monopoly pattern of air transport industry and the introduction of international advanced experience, the domestic air passenger service level is improving day by day. "Passengers are God" has become an industry creed, and some rules are changing: airlines should explain the reasons for flight delays in detail, ask passengers to understand, arrange accommodation properly, and compensate passengers for losses caused by travel delays when necessary. This kind of thing was unimaginable 10 years ago, but now it has become a reality. This is the progress of the industry and society.
It is actually a reasonable basic requirement for consumers to require cigarettes to indicate the date of production and shelf life. Judging from the spirit of the rule of law in the modern market and the awakening of consumer consciousness, this is also a signal that the market is maturing. China has a large number of "smokers", which is equivalent to a large country with a middle population. According to a sample survey conducted by China Tobacco Corporation, there are about 293 million smokers in China except Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan, while the estimated figure quoted by the United Nations Health News is 350 million. Faced with such a huge consumer group, the tobacco industry should give a positive response to the basic requirements of smokers. The reporter interviewed relevant people in many ways that it is not difficult for the tobacco industry to change the rules and regulations and indicate the production period and shelf life on each box of cigarettes. Of course, it will increase some necessary costs, but it will not be too big. There are at least three obvious advantages: first, the quality of cigarettes is obviously improved, and the long-term accumulated raw cigarettes and finished cigarettes are regularly taken away from warehouses and shelves to form a product inventory process, which can also avoid hoarding by operators; Second, it is conducive to the health and consumption of consumers, so that consumers can clearly understand smoking, spend money to smoke good cigarettes and new cigarettes, and avoid the "double harm" of smoking expired and deteriorated cigarettes. Third, a realistic fence can be added to prevent counterfeit and shoddy cigarettes.
Food experts also suggest that two schemes can be adopted: one is to directly indicate the production date and shelf life of cigarettes, and through experiments, the general names of the north and the south can be indicated respectively. The second is indirect labeling. At least the following words should be marked on the cigarette case: "This product tastes best before a certain day of a certain year." At the same time, general suggestions on the temperature and humidity of cigarette storage are put forward.