MUMBAI: Bizarre rumours and fake WhatsApp videos about "plastic eggs" being sold in its jurisdiction have prompted the Thane Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to clarify that these are false claims. All samples tested were reported to be natural and safe for consumption.
Egg traders are anxious as sales have dropped in Thane, Kalyan and Vasai-Virar region amid the weak Shravan season. Fake videos featuring 'Chinese plastic eggs' had surfaced in West Bengal in April and have spread nationwide since.
Raju Shewale who heads the Mumbai Eggs Association said, "This fake news is circulating in alarming proportion. Mumbai region consumes 70 lakh eggs worth Rs 3.5 crore daily. Business has fallen on the back of these rumours."
Curiously, similar complaints are being filed in police stations across Mumbai, Thane and Vasai-Virar. In Kurar, Malad (East), a customer complained about smelly eggs sold by a vendor. Senior inspector Udayraje Shirke said samples were sent for testing to FDA.
An egg seller in nearby Islah Pura of Kurar said, "It was a quarrel between customer and seller over rotten eggs that led to the police seizing 6,000 eggs from poor vendor. Leftover eggs do spoil during Shravan as consumption is low. Plastic eggs do not smell, only natural ones do. And how do you crack open a plastic ball?"
FDA officials in Thane are bearing the brunt of the rumour. "We have analysed samples from 20-25 shops in Kalyan and all eggs were found to be fit for consumption," said an officer.
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