In an appallingly unpleasant incident in Kolkata, a mother-daughter duo was in for a serious shock when a trip to their favorite fast food outlet turned out to be far from what they’d planned. With a deep-fried lizard in their serving of fries, the incident was practically a nightmare for them.
The Events That Transpired
As per a report published by TOI, a mother took her daughter out for a birthday outing that soon turned disastrous. While munching on a portion of french fries, they were taken aback when the little girl found a dead lizard inside. The mother, who is expecting, instantly felt sick. The worst part is that when the incident was brought to the manager, reportedly, he displayed a very nonchalant attitude and seemed completely unapologetic.
Need For Quality Provisions & Stringent Penalties
This isn’t the first time that an incident like this has come to light in our country. There have been constant reports of people finding all sorts of bugs and insects in restaurants and chains across India, including reports of a live worm found in a Subway sandwich. Had this incident transpired overseas however, things would have been dealt with in a completely different manner.
Model Provisions & Routine Inspections In The US
“In countries like USA, such incidents are taken very seriously and held to a strict account”
Restaurants and franchises that don’t meet required health standards run the risk of being shut down. In fact, the FDA or Food and Drug Administration, a federal agency in the US, publishes the FDA Food Code which sets forth model provisions for ensuring complete safety and the best quality in restaurants and franchises. Local and county health departments have routine inspections and licensing checks to make sure the provisions are being adhered to.
The Current Situation In India
In India, though the FSSAI (Food Standards & Safety Authority of India) attempts to check the food, poor implementation and age-old guidelines that are completely irrelevant in today’s context add absolutely no value to those ‘checks’. The need of the hour is to ensure that proper guidelines and provisions are implemented in the country, where at least basic health standards and quality checks are being adhered to and stringent penalties are put in place to address any sort of deviance from these standards.
So Are International Food Chains Your Best Bet?
“While most of us look at international food chains as the safest option when we’re in the mood for some junk, reality paints a different picture”
This incident also raises a serious question on how effective quality control in big franchises and international food chains in India really is. Health experts, for long, have criticized the aggressive advertising and marketing tactics that these brands use to garner a larger customer base, by influencing consumer preferences. The truth is that most of these food chains compromise on their quality and don’t make the same efforts to maintain consistency in the quality (and taste) across their franchises.
Growing Competition & Compromised Quality
Most of these franchises are under an increasing amount of competition and pressure with each other. In order to maximize their revenues and generate maximum profits, these chains are more than willing to dilute their quality and even sacrifice ingredients altogether. Chicken patties being mixed with ridiculous amounts of soya chunks and pizza sauce with red pumpkin as a filler are not rare occurrences. Food consultants specifically recommend giving those limited-time offers a miss, because most brands see this as an opportunity to use the worst-quality food by packaging and marketing it smartly.
For the time being, while India continues to be bombarded with these international food chains, looks like you’ll just have to reconsider the ‘healthy’ unhealthy options you have the next time you’re in the mood to satiate your junk food craving!
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