Aug 12, 2019
OPEN HOUSE: HOW TO ENSURE THAT ROADSIDE VENDORS SELL HYGIENIC FOOD? Need for more awareness on food safety norms
Street food vends on the roadside in Ludhiana.
Nowadays, traveling through the streets we came across a fair amount of street vendors selling different types of junk food without ensuring its hygiene. They do not understand that their unhygienic food can become a health hazard. Customers should avoid food from vendors, and if they want to buy, they should ensure its hygiene. The government should tackle the problem by making laws that pressurises street vendors to sell hygienic food.
Lavanaya Sood
Vendors should cover food items
As far as hygiene of street food is considered, the standards are very poor. The authorities concerned are turning a blind eye to this issue. The vendors do not cover their food items which attract flies and germs. It also leads to many health problems such as diarrhoea. The least a vendor can do is cover the food items and wear gloves too. Proper waste management should be in place and the authorities should lay down regulations regarding food safety and cleanliness. Heavy penalty should be imposed on vendors who flout rules.
Deepnayan Bahl
Check Waste disposal system
Roadside vendors often sell food prepared in unhygienic conditions. The Health Department should conduct seminars and provide training to these vendors. FSSAI should provide certificate to those vendors who fulfil certain laid-down conditions. These certificates should be displayed at shops and rehris. Sanitary conditions and waste disposal system should be strictly checked. They should use gloves while preparing food.
Ritu Priya
Role of government organisations
The need to ensure hygiene of food sold by vendors has become the need of the hour. Municipalities and food organisations can play their part by recruiting officers to examine the quality of food. The responsibility also lies with the consumer, who should avoid consumption of these products if they are unaware of the conditions it has been prepared in.
Japkirat
Avoid uncovered food
Many roadside vendors do not cover food items which attracts flies and germs. So the consumers should avoid uncovered food. It should be made compulsory to cover the food so that they are not exposed to insects. Vendors should ensure that every food item they serve is prepared in hygienic conditions. They should voluntarily adopt hygienic measures to improve the quality of the food served.
Devna Munjal
Training should be given to vendors
Habits of food vendors such as not washing their hands, not covering their hair, use of contaminated water, slime layer on poorly cleaned utensil and improper handling of food should be brought under check by the legislation. Every street food vendor, helper and food handler should undergo a basic training in food hygiene and safety. The training should include the procedure to prevent food contamination, risk of food-borne pathogens, maintaining personal hygiene and cleaning of utensils.
Ravi Chander Garg
Guilty should be fined
It is a matter of serious concern that some fruit sellers sell fruits kept in the open for long. Each fruit seller should obey the norms and precautions given by an expert team of doctors and other municipal officials. Vendors who violate the norms should be penalised. There should be a regulatory body to keep a vigilant eye on them. Each fruit seller must be provided a license to sell fruits and salad.
Dr Mohd Saleem
Unhygienic method of preparation
Most of the street food vendors do not practice hygienic method of preparing food. The present conditions, in which most of the street food vendors cook and sale, are unsuitable. Food is exposed to flies, birds and rodents, which cause food-borne pathogens. Street food vendors also lack proper food handling and waste disposal training.
Angel Arora
Consumers equally responsible
Consumers should not buy any eatables from vendors who do not keep their food in hygienic conditions. The MC and local health department should regularly conduct raids to make sure that all roadside vendors adopt hygienic methods of preparing food, especially in rainy season. Consumers should make sure that vendors have gloves on while serving food, the utensils from which food is served should be clean and the food items must be covered.
Bir Devinder Singh Bedi
Dust and smoke make food unhygienic
The food sold by roadside vendors becomes more unhygienic as the day goes by because of dust and smoke emitted by passing vehicles. Vendors also use sub-standard oil and butter to make food. Consumers should prefer to eat at places which use disposable plates and maintain hygiene.
Karanpreet Kaur
Training must be compulsory
The MC should make it a rule for vendors to undergo training in food handling to ensure hygiene of food. The dust and smoke released by vehicles make roads the worst place to sell food. The cut and uncovered food is easily attacked by micro-organisms and insects which spread diseases. It is better to avoid such food, especially raw vegetables and fruits, for a healthy body.
Vaishnavi Kharbanda
Assure quality of fruits
To assure the quality of vegetables and fruits, a mechanism should be brought in place to check chemical residues on the surface of these goods. The government should make standard policies to check, test and assure the quality of food being sold by vendors.
Insha Hanif
Food Safety Department must take food samples
Eating unhygienic foods often lead to various food-borne diseases. Vendors must keep in mind that tasty food is not the only parameter customers look for and if they serve food prepared in unhygienic conditions, customers will fall sick and it they will lose their customers. Hygienic and healthy food should be served to make permanent customers. The Food Safety Department must conduct regular checking and take food samples of street vendors to ensure the quality of food. Customers must be aware of what is being served to them.
Rattandeep Singh Oberoi
Vendors should keep eatables covered
Health is considered to be the most important part of the wellbeing of human beings. One needs to take balanced diet and hygienic food to stay healthy. But in various parts of the city, rehriwalas, vendors and other temporary eating joints along the roadsides are selling eatables which are not always hygienic. Rules must be formulated for these sellers. There must be an agency which issues licences to sell street food. Designated zones must be allotted to them. Vendors should keep eatables covered.
Farzana Khan
Impose heavy penalties on defaulters
As roadside vendors cater to a large number of customers on a daily basis, it becomes important to ensure that the food they serve is hygienic. Both the authorities and consumers need to play a proactive role to ensure the quality. Since it is not possible to keep a check on each vendor, the authorities should start allotting designated vending zones. The authorities should impose specific norms applicable to all vendors regarding cleanliness such as wearing caps and gloves, using good quality items and impose heavy penalties for non-fulfillment of the same. The major role is of the consumers who should question what is actually being served to them and remind the vendors of the norms. Well-informed consumers can ensure implementation of rules possible because if they will not allow the vendors to deceive them, the vendors will ultimately be forced to serve accordingly.
Akrita Budhiraja
More mobile testing labs should be launched
The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) will implement a ‘clean street food hub programme’. Wolfing down pani-pooris being served by a street vendor can become more relishing if the food safety regulator has its way. Vendors should be encouraged to comply with certain standards and those meeting the criteria would get a “clean street food hub certificate”. Such certified street vending zones will provide safe, tasty and affordable eating options for consumers. More mobile testing labs should be launched to ensure that customers relish quality street food. New benchmarks should be set for hygiene and sanitary conditions to ensure safety and hygiene among street food vendors. The authorities should raise health and safety standards of street foods.
Shubhangi Sofat
Awareness drives on hygiene should be held
Getting hygienic food from roadside vendors is quite difficult due to lack of proper supervision by the government agencies for food safety standardisation of these facilities. Vendors should be made aware of the diseases caused due to unhygienic food they serve to their customers. Time-to-time, awareness drives regarding the methods of maintaining hygiene and cleanliness during cooking and serving food should be organised. Areas should be earmarked for food vendors so that there can be proper check on hygiene maintained by them with minimum inconvenience. It can also solve the problem of traffic jam-like situations near roadside food vendors. Some type of licencing for food quality standards for roadside vendors can also be a solution for quality assurance and if they fail to comply with the standards, their licence should be cancelled.
Vandna Malik
Licence of defaulters should be cancelled
In Ludhiana, where food is an emotion, keeping a hold over ever-increasing number of food vendors and the quality of food being served under a scanner is an arduous job. The administration has to play a proactive role. Regular and surprise visits by the Food Safety Department should be there. Licence of defaulters should be cancelled. A particular area should be assigned to vendors where a plaque displaying FSSAI certificate should be put up. This would ensure people that the food served is hygienic and affordable.
Neeti Marwaha
Training programmes on food safety be held
Food sold by roadside vendors is often unhygienic because they use unhygienic methods to prepare food. Before preparing the food, they don’t wash their hands. They don’t even cover the food after prepping it which allows flies and insects to sit on it. The district Health Department should organise training programmes on food safety norms for roadside vendors to ensure that food or snacks sold at roadside vends are manufactured in line with food safety norms and served in hygienic conditions.
Ravleen Kaur
Provide safety kitsto vendors
Proper food safety norms must be formed and training must be provided by the government departments concerned for the protection of the interest of the public. The Health Safety Department must ensure that food or snacks sold by roadside vendors are manufactured within the food safety norms and served in hygienic conditions. Customers often unaware of the food being served under unhygienic conditions become vulnerable to numerous diseases, especially during the summer season. The Health Department should organise programmes to spread awareness among residents about unhygienic street foods.
Manpriya Kaur
Govt should set standard norms for vendors
Street foods are perceived to be a major public health risk. The government should set standard norms which have to be followed by each vendor before selling his product to public. Consumers themselves should be aware of their health and ask the vendor to wear gloves and mask while preparing food. The Health Department should regularly visit these vends and inspect the basic infrastructure of services, potable water used, utensils etc. and should charge heavy penalty if vendor doesn’t follow the set standards. Street plays can be organised by students to make public aware about the hazardous effects of street food.
Cheshta Vohra
Norms of hygiene should be set for vendors
With the onset of summer, diet plays an important role in keeping one healthy. With many preferring street food to satiate their taste buds, it is important to focus on hygiene in order to stay fit. Consumers should avoid eating uncovered food .Vendors often use water from roadside taps which is not clean. Consumers should avoid drinking such water. The Health Department must set certain norms of hygiene which each vendor should follow. It should be necessary to cover the food so that they are not exposed to flies and insects. The MC authorities should organise hygiene training for street vendors and issue licences to vendors.
Mehakpreet Kaur
Conduct random checks on roadside stalls
Often vendors engaged in selling snacks, beverages and other food items are unaware of awareness the food safety norms. As a result, customers often become their victim when food prepared by venders in unhygienic conditions is served to them. The Food Safety Department should conduct random checks on roadside stalls to ensure that vendors maintain hygienic conditions. The stall from where you eat your snacks should be clean. There should be bins placed for garbage disposal.
Tanvi Gulati
Never drink water from open sources
In India, food which is prepared and sold on the roadsides is usually unhealthy and unhygienic. We should be cautious and eat only clean and fully cooked food. Pre-cut fruits and salads should be avoided at all times. We should check the cleanliness of the stall. Stay away from chutneys and sauces kept in open places. Never drink water from open sources.
Pavneet Kaur
Awareness programmes should be organised
Improved safety of street foods can be achieved through awareness programmes involving several partners such as local authorities, government departments and NGOs. The government agencies must also ensure that the food quality is maintained at the farm level. These agencies should keep a check on any misuse of agro chemicals, including pesticides and other veterinary drugs, which have harmful effects on human health. Good agricultural practices should be applied to reduce chemical hazards. The government should promote organic farming techniques.
Gurleen Kaur
Penalties should be imposed on violators
Roadside vendors often don't cover the food items which attract flies and germs and water they use is also not clean, which invites many diseases. The MC should ensure that all vendors follow certain norms of hygiene. Heavy penalties should be imposed if the authorities find any roadside vendor violating food safety norms and serve food which is prepared in unhygienic conditions. Clean and safe drinking water should be used for cooking purposes. It should be compulsory to cover the food items so that they are not exposed to insects.
Anushka
Conduct surprise checks on roadside vends
The authorities concerned should conduct surprise checks on roadside vends to ensure quality food is served to customers. People should not consume the uncovered food and also report about the same with the Food Safety Department. Students must be aware of the harmful effects of eating food prepared in unhygienic conditions.
Ashu Tiwari
Regular inspection of vends should be done
People get enticed to the reasonable price of street food but they are not aware of the conditions such food is prepared. Often such food is prepared in utterly unhygienic conditions. To ensure that vendors are selling hygienic food, a regular inspection of street vends should be done. Use of artificial colours and flavours should be prohibited.
Pratham Singla
Punish culprits
Regular raids should be conducted on roadside vends by the Health Department. Vendors often prepare food in unhygienic conditions and play with our health. A heavy fine should be imposed on those who follow unhealthy practices.
Priyanka
Provide training to vendors in hygienic practices
There is a need to ensure that vendors must sell hygienic food. The Health Department should organise training programmes to train vendors to prepare food items in hygienic conditions. Organise formal training for vendors to improve on their personal and food hygienic practises.
Mehak Bajaj
Make vendors aware about food safety norms
Consuming street foods often cause food poisoning and food-borne disease as these foods are prepared in unhygienic conditions. To ensure roadside vendors serve hygienic street food, the government agencies need to organise training programmes on food safety norms for vendors. This will ensure that food or snacks sold at roadside vends are manufactured in line with food safety norms and served in hygienic conditions.
Deeksha
Food should be prepared in hygienic conditions
To find vendors who violate food safety and hygiene norms, the foodies themselves should be aware of food safety norms. Consumers must check if their food is prepared in hygienic conditions or else they can become vulnerable to numerous diseases, especially during the summer season. The Health Department should organise trainings for vendors to ensure that they follow food safety norms.
Ananya Sharma
Proper waste management should be in place
We often see miscellaneous roadside vendors who don't follow sanitary practices and just focus on making profits. They should be penalised. The authorities concerned must ensure that these vendors adopt hygienic practices to serve quality food. Proper waste management should be in place and the authorities should lay down regulations. Trainings should be organised for vendors. Penalty should be imposed on errant vendors.
Gurleen Kaur
Vendors should use good ingredients
The government should provide vendors training in proper working and cooking of healthy food. Roadside about ingredients should also take care of ingredients when they cook food. If the ingredients used are good, there are less chances of getting ill.
Niranjan Kaur
Place of preparation of food should be clean
Various measures should be adopted to ensure hygienic street food in Ludhiana such as regular inspections by the Public Health inspectors. Ingredients, especially water, used by vendors should be hygienic. Youth should be made more conscious about health hazards by eating junk food. In addition to this, place of preparation of food should be properly cleaned. These small efforts would make a huge difference in ensuring hygienic supply of street food.
GURVIR KAUR
Place dustbins near stalls
Street vendors often don't take care about hygiene which leads to many food-borne diseases. Vendors should maintain cleanliness by using clean and fresh water for food. They should also use disposable plates. There should be dustbins near stalls. Spitting near stalls should be prohibited. Vendors should be given proper training. Regular inspections must be conducted. Don't eat from such food stall vendors who don't follow the hygiene practices.
Abhilasha Singh
Be aware of what you eat
It is the responsibility of vendors to provide hygienic food to their customers. They should use clean water and good ingredients while cooking food. It is also the responsibility of people to be concerned about the quality of food. A committee should be established to keep an eye on the activities of vendors and punitive measures should be implemented on those who don't pay attention on the hygienic preparation of food items.
KAMALDEEP KAUR
QUESTION
How can the schools educate children about the importance of civic duties?
OPEN HOUSE COMMENT
Minna Zutshi
Regular checks must on quality of food provided by vendors
There can be physical, biological and/or chemical contamination in food. The FSSAI has laid down certain food safety and hygiene requirements for Food Business Operators (FBOs). There are around 25,000 FBOs registered in the state. There are also around 10,000 street vendors across the state. Apart from training street vendors on food safety and hygiene, regular checks on the quality of food provided by them are a must. Vendors have to adhere to the norms of food safety and hygiene. Any laxity on their part should invite a strict action. On the part of consumers, awareness and vigilance are equally important. Consumers have the right to demand absolute adherence to food safety and hygiene. Anything less than this poses a risk to their health and wellbeing. Street food should be safe as well as hygienic.
HAVE YOUR SAY Food vendors violate norms
The civic authorities need to strictly implement the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, to ensure that food vendors in the city don’t play with the health of people. We are worried about fast food and other eatables being sold in the city. Despite clear directions, at many places food is being prepared in unhygienic conditions. This needs to stop. Varun Sharma, Talab Tillo
Traffic rules flouted
While the government has come up with strict driving laws which include heavy penalties for violating of any traffic norm, the flouting of rules goes unabated on roads. A person driving a two-wheeler without a helmet and talking on phone is a common site. Traffic policemen are nowhere to be seen. Vikas Verma, Gandhinagar
Have your say
Is a civic issue bothering you? Are you agitated over the lack of concern? Is there something heartening that you feel needs to be highlighted? Or a picture which in your opinion ought to be seen by many, and not just you?
F&B: Tapping the health-seekers
Last year, PepsiCo, too, had reduced the salt content in two of its Lay’s chips variants and introduced Kurkure Multigrain packs with 21% lesser sodium.
The low-salt packaged food products market, that was worth Rs 265 crore in 2018, is growing the fastest at 31.2% compared to the low-sugar foods and beverages markets.
Packaged food and beverage brands are cutting back on sugar and salt in their products as pressure mounts from global and national regulators, and consumers look for healthier snacking alternatives.
In June this year, homegrown FMCG company CavinKare introduced ‘no added sugar’ milkshake variants under Cavin’s Milkshake Lite, whereas confectionery brand Mondelez India launched Cadbury Dairy Milk bars with 30% less sugar. Last year, PepsiCo, too, had reduced the salt content in two of its Lay’s chips variants and introduced Kurkure Multigrain packs with 21% lesser sodium.
This is in line with the Eat Right India movement launched by the Food Safety Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) in 2018. Companies like Hindustan Unilever, Britannia, Nestlé, Dabur, MTR and Haldiram’s have pledged to cut down the sugar and sodium level in their products — by approximately 5% — over the next six years.
According to Euromonitor International, the low-salt packaged food products market, that was worth Rs 265 crore in 2018, is growing the fastest at 31.2% compared to the low-sugar foods and beverages markets. The reduced sugar foods and reduced sugar beverages markets are growing at 11.6% and 3.8%, respectively, with the former being the largest in terms of retail volume sales, at Rs 491 crore, while the latter, at just Rs 45 crore, hasn’t taken off well in India yet. Slow switch
CavinKare took 18 months of research and fine-tuning to debut Cavin’s Milkshake Lite in the market. For Cadbury, matching the taste of the less-sugar variant with the original, given its 70-year legacy, was key. “From a scientific lens, it’s difficult to reduce a significant portion of an ingredient and still maintain the same taste and quality,” says Anil Viswanathan, director – marketing (chocolates), Mondelez India.
Ankur Bisen, senior VP, Technopak Advisors, believes what is more crucial than the formulation is market readiness. While consumers are surely warming up to healthier alternatives, production and adoption of these will be gradual.
“Since these behemoths have established themselves on the back of products with high sugar and salt content, it will be difficult for them to shift to healthier products overnight. This current phase is one of transition,” points out Bisen.
According to Rajat Wahi, partner, Deloitte Consulting India, this trend will not become mainstream for at least another decade. In the meantime, companies may look at acquisitions, greenfield opportunities, and new product launches in the health and wellness segment, apart from tweaking their current product portfolio. While this is part of the agenda of FMCG companies, he says, “it is still a very new category, and one does not find a large variety of these products in mom-and-pop stores yet.”
The retail presence of these products is largely limited to the urban markets and modern retail outlets, except maybe for CavinKare’s no-added-sugar milkshake, which is being sold at independent supermarkets and self-service stores in the metros and 10 lakh plus towns. The missing ingredient
Neither CavinKare nor Mondelez is promoting these products extensively. And PepsiCo seems to be relying heavily on social media to get the message across to consumers, instead of using mainstream advertising. “This is a slow burn category. Therefore, we are focussing first on sampling, in-store and mall activations, and other BTL marketing initiatives,” says BP Ravindran, business head – beverages and dairy, CavinKare.
Mondelez, which is a big spender on advertising, has opted for digital, outdoor, and in-store visibility for its Cadbury Dairy Milk 30% Less Sugar variant. Wahi Swaad, Wahi Mithaas is how the company is positioning it. “We see the launch as not that of an SKU but of a platform. At this stage, our focus will be to build awareness and drive trials for this new platform,” says Viswanathan.
Clearly, awareness about these healthier varieties is lacking. Wahi says the onus for this is on the FMCG brands. “Not all consumers are aware of the risks of consuming packaged foods high in sugar and salt. Brands will need to convey the health benefits and long-term positive impact of low sugar and salt products, especially since a lot of consumers are children and the youth,” he adds.
Seminar on Food Safety Act organized
A seminar on Food Safety Act was held at the conference hall of the Gwalior Chamber of Commerce on Sunday to deliberate on the various aspects of the Act.
The seminar was attended by Food Safety Act expert Sanjay Bahirani, Chamber President Vijay Goyal, Vice- President Paras Jain, Secretary Dr Praveen Agarwal, Additional Secretary Brijesah Goyal and Treasurer Basant Agarwal among others.
Speaking as the key speaker, Sanjay Bahirani said that food safety refers to preparing, storing and selling food in such a way to reduce the risk of people becoming sick from food borne diseases.
He added that the rate at which adulteration of food products is rising in India is a matter of great concern and that this act is to ensure safe food for the people.
On the legal issues of the Act Sanjay Bahirani said that a registration and in some cases a license is obligatory to produce and sell food products.
A registration must be obtained from the competent authority for turnovers ranging from 2.5 Lakhs and 25 Lakhs while a license is required for turnovers above that. He also said that production and sale of food products without a registration or a license is a serious criminal offense.
Chamber President Vijay Goyal said that adulterated food is harmful for public health and that the number of deadly diseases resulting from food adulteration is increasing in the country.
He added that everyone including the government, traders and the producers of food products have a duty to prevent this bad practice.
The President also said that lack of knowledge of the various aspects of the Act can lead to many complications and exhorted the audience to get a thorough knowledge of the Act.
He added that the Chamber will write to the government about the steps the traders of food products will take to prevent food adulteration.
Rs 30,000 fine imposed on two business establishments
JAMMU: With an aim to eliminate menace of child labour from Jammu district, Sanjeev Gandotra, Mobile Magistrate has imposed fine of Rs 30,000 on two business establishments under Shops and Establishment Act 1966.
Fine of Rs 10,000 was imposed on M/s Vaishno Dhaba, Maheshpura Chowk, Bakshi Nagar against the defaulter namely Ashu Kumar alias Pawan, while fine of Rs 20,000 was imposed on M/s Chettys Corner, C/o Veekage Foods Corporation, Nanak Nagar Jammu against the defaulter Madhu Jain, W/o Kamal Jain including 6 hours imprisonment to her.
The challan in these cases were presented before the court of law against the erring defaulters and Labour Department was represented by Pawan Bhatti, Labour Officer Prosecution.
Renu Bala Saini, Assistant Labour Commissioner Jammu has appealed to Jammuites not to employ any child for domestic purpose or in commercial establishments for avoiding the legal action against the erring persons
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