San Francisco, Oct 21 (IANS): In an apparent lapse in product quality checks, third party sellers on Amazon have been selling long expired food including old Hostess brownies and Teavana goods which were discontinued in 2017, the media reported.

There have been reports of the retail giant's marketplace having problems of counterfeit products.

At least 40 per cent of sellers had over five complaints about expired food, according to the findings from data firm 3PM.

And in cases where multiple vendors are selling the same product, it's not always clear who you're buying from or whether or not it's fresh. Amazon has taken down some listings, Engadget reported quoting CNBC.

According to the CNBC report, sellers have to honour both the law and policies of the company, including a guarantee that any item has a shelf life of at least 90 days.

In addition to the confusion over who was selling the products the retail giant would reportedly cancel reviews if they're for orders it fulfilled using its warehouses. While this is meant to "take responsibility" for the experience, it could also mask recurring problems.