As the Mid-Autumn Festival approaches, the mooncake market is booming. Some consumers believe that the closer the production date, the better, and even hope to buy mooncakes made on the same day. In response, a person from the Sanya Consumer Association stated that consumers should not overly pursue product freshness, because varieties such as Cantonese-style mooncakes are hard when freshly made and only become tastier after a "return oil" period.
The shelf life indicated by manufacturers for mooncakes is generally between 1 and 2 months. Due to the adoption of advanced preservation technologies, some mooncakes can have a shelf life of up to 3 months or even half a year. However, many consumers, due to a lack of understanding of the mooncake production process, believe that the closer the production date, the better. This is actually a misconception.
According to relevant experts, freshly produced Cantonese-style mooncakes are dry and hard, not moist and rich. They generally require a "return oil" period. As long as they are within the shelf life, the texture of packaged mooncakes will not change significantly, and their safety and hygiene indicators are also fine.