It’s that time of the year again. It’s officially mooncake season.
The Mid-Autumn Festival, also known as the Mooncake Festival, is just around the corner.
It falls on the 15th day of the eighth lunar month, which is on 29 September this year.
In Singapore, the peak of the festival comes from the countdown, which becomes heightened with bustling food fairs, pop-up mooncake booths and lantern decorations all across Singapore.
Not to mention the joy of feasting on free mooncakes that we receive from relatives and colleagues.
While it’s all fun and exciting, one woman’s mooncake shopping spree turned into a cautionary tale we can all learn from.
A woman paid $1,128.33 for mooncakes, only to discover later that most would expire ten days from the delivery date.
Woman Unhappy Over Mooncakes That Will Expire in 10 Days
According to Stomp, most notoriously known as the one-stop hub for complaint stories submitted by contributors, the story was raised by a woman named Stomper JC.
The woman had bought 15 mooncakes she intended to give to friends, family, customers and business associates.
She placed the mooncake orders with the seller, Peach Garden, on 31 August and received them via delivery on 4 September.
Upon checking the expiry date of the mooncakes, Stomper JC said that she was shocked to discover that most mooncakes would expire in ten days.
She mentioned that she would be embarrassed to give out expired mooncakes to people and worried that they would’ve gotten sick from eating the mooncakes.
The expiration date for a few of the mooncakes was on 24 September.
Stomper JC felt that Peach Garden was trying its shot at dishonesty and perhaps had delivered old batches of mooncakes to her.
According to the packaging instructions of the mooncakes, the baked mooncakes are best consumed within ten days. Otherwise, they should be kept in the refrigerator and consumed within three weeks.
But to Stomper JC’s dismay, she was unhappy that the mooncakes given would ‘expire’ within ten days.
Peach Garden’s Response to the Incident
Speaking to Stomp in response to their query, a Peach Garden spokesperson said they take customer complaints seriously.
According to the spokesperson, Peach Garden has extended their apologies to Stomper JC and explained their mooncake production process and that their mooncakes are 100% handmade with no preservatives added.
The spokesperson added that Peach Garden’s mooncakes are best enjoyed within ten days of purchase, which was shared with their customers and mentioned in their product guidelines.
The expiry dates for Peach Garden’s mooncakes typically fall between two to three weeks from the production date to ensure that they maintain their freshness for an extended period compared to other brands.
However, their associate had mistakenly packed the wrong batch of mooncakes into the order.
Peach Garden told Stomp that it has since offered Stomper JC an exchange for the mooncakes.
On 15 September, they provided a one-for-one exchange for Stomper JC’s remaining mooncakes and those already distributed to her guests at their convenience. Stomper JC was also given extra boxes of mooncakes as an apologetic gesture.
With the negative experience of purchasing mooncakes, Stomper JC advises other consumers to check the mooncakes’ expiry dates before purchasing and when they will be receiving the delivery.
According to China Educational Tours, a baked mooncake typically can be kept in a cool place within 5 to 25 degrees Celsius and not exposed to heat for up to 60 days.
Depending on the different ingredients and preparation process, mooncakes can be stored for a minimum of 20 to 60 days.
Handmade mooncakes can only be stored for seven to ten days at less than 25 degrees Celsius.
Meanwhile, snow skin mooncakes must be placed in the refrigerator below 2 to 5 degrees Celsius and can be stored for up to a few weeks. Otherwise, they tend to spoil within two hours.
Before you purchase mooncakes this month, as the Stomper says, make sure you check the mooncakes’ expiration dates.