Norms issued for running juice shops

The Commissioner of Food Safety has issued a set of guidelines to be followed by all food business operators running juice shops across the State.

The Commissioner said that guidelines were issued in the wake of increasing cases of food poisoning being reported centred around juice shops. Majority of these shops were using milk, ice, and water, the quality of which was highly suspect.

All juice shops should have FSSA licence or registration, which should be displayed prominently. The water and ice being used in these shops should be safe and of the prescribed quality.

The fruits, sugar, nuts, and other additives used to make juices or milk shakes should be bought only from shops or outlets or traders who have a FSSA licence and the purchase bills should be kept. All packed food items should have the necessary label information. The details of purchase — name of the shop/trader, quantity, price, etc — should be entered in a register systematically and should be produced whenever officials come for inspection.

The water being used in juice-making should be from a source of impeccable quality and the quality of the water source should be tested every six months at a government-approved analytical laboratory. These reports should be kept for perusal in the shop.

All food items, including water, in the shops should be stored in proper food containers of food-grade quality and these should be kept covered.

The fruits should be of good quality, and there should not be any trace of fungus in these.

The fruits should be washed and stored in refrigerated condition. Ice should not be stored in thermocol boxes, but should be stored in the freezer or in proper ice boxes. Prepared juice should not be stored for long in refrigerators.