Order related approved notified National Reference Laboratory (NRL)

Food safety department conducts raids at Delhi sweetshops ahead of Holi

The Food Safety Standard Authority of India (FSSAI), the apex food regulator has directed food commissioners of all the States and UTs to keep a strong surveillance on milk products.

Last week, Delhi govt’s Department of Food Safety received a tipoff regarding adulterated sweets. 

HIGHLIGHTS

• Special drive will be carried out till 21st of March
• milk products will be checked for adulterants
• Shops in CP, Karol Bagh, Bengali Market being raided

Ahead of Holi celebrations in the city, the Delhi government’s Department of Food Safety is conducting a series of raids at various sweet shops across the city to check the quality of gujjiya (a sweet deep-fried dumpling) and milk products.

Last week the department received a tipoff regarding adulterated sweets being sold in the market which led to food safety officials continuously picking up samples from the shops. These areas include: CP, Karol Bagh, Bengali Market, Chandini Chowk etc.

The special drive will be carried out till 21st of March. The Food Safety Standard Authority of India (FSSAI), the apex food regulator has directed food commissioners of all the States and UTs to keep a strong surveillance on milk products (specially products like Khoya, paneer, dahi, ghee etc) to check their microbiological quality and presence of adulterants.

Lakhpat Rai Garg, the food commissioner of Delhi said, All sweet shops located in Delhi are under the surveillance of the food safety department. We have received few complaints from public that sub-standard sweets are being sold in the market. Therefore, we have alerted our food safety inspector to pick up as many as samples from the market. All collected samples tested at our laboratory for investigation and the officials will submit a detailed report to us.

So far, we have collected 112 samples of sweets including Cheena, Ghee, Paneer, Koya, Gujjiya, besan ladoo and other milk based sweets are main items on radar. We want to ensure that safe and quality sweet items reach to the consumer. Garg added. In the recent past, the department has picked 179 milk samples and 213 milk products samples respectively.

Out of 179 milk samples, we found 33 samples sub-standard and 3 samples were misbranded. Among 213 milk products, 3 were found unsafe’ and 40 sub-standard and 7 samples were misbranded, informed the official.

Idli Dosa batter mfg units with Rs 12 lakh or above turnover to obtain license from FSSAI, with lower turnover to register themselves

Idli Dosa batter mfg units with Rs 12 lakh or above turnover to obtain license from FSSAI, with lower turnover to register themselves

Coimbatore, Mar 19 (KNN) Taking note of the several unregistered idli and dosa batter making units working in and around the city, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has mandated it for the units with an annual turnover of Rs 12 lakh or above to obtain license from it. Whereas, the units with lesser turnovers have to register themselves with the food watchdog.

FSSAI has urged idli and dosa batter makers to register themselves with the Department for running the business irrespective of the sales volume.

According to a media report quoting FSSAI officials, several unregistered units were operating in the city and rural limits serving local needs.

“Idli and dosa batter has very short shelf life. Sale of expired batter will not be permitted. If the product is sold in packets, it should have proper labelling including the date of manufacture and expiry date. Customers should ensure that they are not buying expired product,” said B. Vijayalalithambigai, Designated Officer of FSSAI in Coimbatore.

As many as 127 idli and dosa batter manufacturing units have registered themselves with the FSSAI in Coimbatore district.

Meanwhile, the actual number of such units, especially small scale ones operating in nearby areas is expected to be reportedly more than 500.

FSSAI recently inspected several batter making units in the city and found that many of them were not registered with the regulatory body.

“Units with an annual turnover of Rs 12 lakh or above must obtain license from FSSAI to run the business. As of now, three batter manufacturing units have obtained license in the district. During inspections, we have identified units that are into large scale production and advised them to obtain licence. Units with an annual turnover below Rs 12 lakh are mandated to get a registration certificate,” said Vijayalalithambigai, according to the media report.

Mayor says Indira Canteen food safe, cites analyst’s findings

Bengaluru: Mayor Gangambike Mallikarjun, two of her predecessors and a few corporators on Tuesday put up a stout defence, vouching for the quality of food provided at Indira Canteens in the city. 

They also produced a BBMP food analyst’s findings on the quality of food samples from select Indira Canteens and contested claims made by BJP corporator Umesh Shetty on Monday. He had produced findings of test results of Indira Canteens samples by two laboratories.

The mayor and her team even warned of serious action against Shetty, if charges framed by him are not proven. Gangambike said she spoke to BBMP commissioner N Manjunatha Prasad and other health officers and asked them to collect samples of cooked and raw food from 16 Indira Canteen kitchens in the city to dispute Shetty’s claims.

“Indira Canteens were started to cater to poor people who can’t afford quality food at cheaper prices and it is a hit in Bengaluru. BJP corporator Shetty has tried to politicise the issue in the wake of the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. Nobody knows when Shetty took the samples and submitted them to the labs. Besides, Ramaiah advanced testing laboratory, where Shetty claimed to have got the tests done, is not authorised to conduct such tests under Food Safety & Standards Authority of India (FSSAI). Hence, Shetty’s claims are not authenticated,” claimed Gangambike.

Gangambike further appealed to citizens to not harbour any fears as the food supplied at India Canteen is fit for consumption. She claimed the BBMP food analyst had taken samples from Indira Canteens in two wards of Mahadevapura assembly constituency recently and found them to be satisfactory.

While samples of tomato bath and shyavige payasa were collected on March 1 from TC Palya, rice kheer was collected from Doddanekundi. The BBMP food analyst, who found their physical appearance satisfactory, said added colour, extraneous matter, presence of insects and rodent hair/excreta were not found. Further on March 7, the report authenticated that the samples sent for analysis conformed to the FSSAI standards.

Former Congress mayors Manjunatha Reddy and G Padmavathi said Shetty was trying to create fear and panic among poor people who were dependent on Indira Canteens for quality food.

Congress floor party leader Abdul Wajeed said there is no truth and credibility in the allegations made by Shetty. Every month around two lakh people consume food prepared and distributed at Indira Canteens, but till today not a single complaint of any individual facing health problems have been reported, he added.