Italy is enforcing new food safety rules on the preparation, packaging and distribution of ready-to-eat fruit and vegetables, such as bagged salads and fruit salads. Retailers now are required to keep vegetables at a temperature below 8 degrees centigrade. The addition of non-fresh or dried ingredients of plant origin is permitted, but in amounts not exceeding 40 percent of the finished product. Packaging also should include clear and visible information such as “products washed and ready-to-eat”, “keep refrigerated at temperatures below 8 degrees centigrade” and “consume within two days of opening the package and no later than the expiration date”, as well as instructions for products that need to be cooked.
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