The Consumer Association issued the following statement: "From a trader and a company importing 24 tons of contaminated rice and selling it in the markets despite the authorities' seizure order, to a shipment of 4,506 tons of moldy wheat deemed fit for Lebanese bread by a judge, in both cases, the criminal should have been imprisoned and investigated. However, the criminal acted as if there was no state or accountability in Lebanon, ultimately escaping the law and accountability, and is now free without trouble. This is simply an invitation for anyone wanting to steal or dump their waste to come to Lebanon.
The case of selling and consuming thousands of tons of contaminated rice and moldy wheat, revealed by Al-Akhbar newspaper, is not an exceptional individual act but rather one of thousands, if not millions, of operations that both the private and public sectors have excelled in carrying out through the corruption networks that have existed since the establishment of the state. The residents of Lebanon pay for this with their money and their health, generation after generation.
The Consumer Association has faced this issue for over 25 years, proposing numerous solutions and was fundamental in bringing the Food Safety Law to light in 2015, in addition to training dozens of municipalities and assisting national industries in improving their conditions. Nevertheless, the deviation of the executive, parliamentary, and judicial authorities and the corruption of most of their officials have obstructed any possibility of reform in the country and ensured the protection of the health and safety of the population.
The association has directed efforts from the very first moments to publish information about this issue to prepare, along with a group of allied lawyers, to take personal prosecution against the companies responsible for the crime of poisoning thousands of citizens, intentionally, so that they receive the correct legal punishment. However, we call on the remaining judicial and executive authorities, especially the Ministry of Agriculture, and the Ministry of Economy and Trade, to reveal the name of the trader and the company and to trace the stores that distributed this rice to withdraw any remaining quantities, if they exist, and to ban the brand and announce it because it is a right and duty of the executive and judicial authorities, as stipulated in the Consumer Protection Law, to protect what remains of consumer health.
At the same time, the association urges all consumers in Lebanese territory to monitor all types of grains, nuts, and spices they purchase or have on hand for safety following these guidelines:
- Store all food items in a cool, dry, and dark place whenever possible.
- The expiration date written on the product is not necessarily reliable; the association has received hundreds of complaints confirming the falsification or extension of dates to serve the trader's interests. Therefore, consumers should check for the presence of insects or fine deposits at the bottom indicating insect activity, as well as monitor the smell or taste of the product. If it is rotten or moldy or contains any strange substance, this indicates the presence of toxic and carcinogenic fungi.
Here, we request consumers to act immediately with the product if they have purchased it recently, photograph the expiration date, and go to the trader to demand a refund, even if it's just a few liras, to pressure him and threaten to disclose this information and file a complaint. Then send the complaint to the Consumer Association at 01750650.
If more than ten days have passed since the purchase or if stored in a hot, humid, and open place and there are insects or a smell or taste of rot (such as nuts or spices), it is essential to dispose of these materials and not consume them, as their cancer risk is significant.
Unfortunately, Lebanese people have failed, after a century, to build a secure, independent, and sovereign entity and have no choice but to reconsider their deadly political and social beliefs that have led us to the lowest depths of nations."
