In a major surveillance drive, Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) has confiscated 400 kgs of Alphonso mangoes at Panaji Municipal Market, which were artificially rnripened using a ripening chemical.
PANAJI: FDA office in Goa further informed that of the 400 kgs of mangoes thus confiscated, one consignment was being brought to Goa in a rickshaw from Vengurla in Maharashtra. The FDA team conducted spot test on this consignment, which responded positive to ethopon chemical presence.
A person called Ravi Shastri from Calca owned both the rickshaw and the consignment. He was detained for interrogation by FDA. Besides this seized consignment of mangoes was also brought to the FDA lab at Bambolim, which also confirmed the usage of ethopon chemical for ripening purposes.
FDA further informed that a case has been booked against the rickshaw owner under Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006. Similarly, FDA also confiscated Deogad mangoes, which were also artificially ripened using the same chemical at Panaji Municipal Market.
The truck transporters unloaded this consignment, which was brought from Belagavi in Karnataka. The FDA officials waited for three hours for owners of this consignment, but they didn’t arrive and even transporters vanished. The tests conducted on this consignment at FDA lab confirmed the presence of chemical.
But, it wasn’t the mangoes alone, as FDA team also seized turmeric powder containing artificially synthetic colour at Panaji Municipal Market. This consignment had 8 bags of turmeric powder containing artificially synthetic colour. Yet again, there was no claimant for this consignment, either.
FDA conducted this surprise surveillance drive in the early hours between 5 am and 8 am on April 21.
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