Features of classification and examination of butter and spreads

Abstract

Spreads are modern fat products whose production technology allows for a wide range of products with predefined properties. Having a similar texture and composition to natural butter, spreads contain more essential polyunsaturated fatty acids, and therefore exceed it in nutritional value. During the customs commodity expertise, it is important to identify the fatty product in order to provide reliable information to the consumer.

For the customs identification of butter and spreads, the following differences may be taken into account: composition and origin, fat content and processing, emulsifiers and additional ingredients, low temperature hardness, purpose and use, labelling and packaging. The main identification tasks in the commodity expertise of these products are: product composition, detection of impurities, organoleptic characteristics, texture and consistency, chemical analysis, comparison with standards, determination of product origin. By performing these identification tasks, the expertise helps to ensure the quality and safety of products on the market and protects consumer rights.

The article deals with the aspects of conducting a forensic commodity examination of butter and spreads, identifies certain aspects of falsification of the goods “butter” and “spread”, their identification and peculiarities of classification in the Ukrainian Classification of Goods for Foreign Economic Activity. The stages of forensic commodity examination of butter and spreads have been provided. General recommendations on the commodity assessment of the quality of these products for consumers and expert organisations have been identified.