February 12, 2008
A rose by any other name may smell as sweet, but Valentine candy that has been sitting on the shelf for 12 months or more may not taste the same. Consumers in New York City are being warned to check the sell-by dates before buying sweets for their sweets.
A New York TV station is reporting that some retailers appear to be recycling last year's Valentine's Day candy, and after a year, it might not be all that appetizing. WCBS-TV said its investigation leads it to conclude that selling year-old candy in the Big Apple is fairly common.
The station said it purchased six bags of Valentine's Day candy at stores in the city. Of those six bags, it said it found five to be inedible.
"From the finest of truffles to candy bought in bulk, most of these products were expired and showed signs of improper storage, like melting and reshaping," the station reported. "Some of the chocolates had white dots or streaks, called a "bloom," which means the chocolate is stale."
Normally, stale chocolate won't make you sick, but it might not send the right message to your loved one. And one piece of candy purchased by the station was particularly gross. Inside a giant Hershey's Kiss, WCBS reported, there was an infestation of worms.
Chocolate has a longer shelf life than most food products, so some stores are tempted to push the envelope, especially when it comes to once a year seasonal items. Consumers in love are urged to check the expiration dates before making a candy purchase.
