LUCKNOW, Sept. 28 -- Consumers buying loose sweets in Uttar Pradesh will no longer have to rely solely on a seller's word to judge their freshness, with the Food Safety and Drug Administration (FSDA) making it mandatory for manufacturers and retailers across the state to display the 'use-by date' of sweets kept for sale from October 15, 2026.

Unlike packaged sweets, loose sweets generally did not have a mandatory requirement to display the final date by which they should be consumed. The new arrangement will require the date to be displayed prominently at the point of sale, enabling customers to check the usable period before making a purchase, FSDA officials said.

The decision follows inspections and enforcement drives conducted over r...