Mar 7, 2018
Here's why you should never, ever, order drinks with ice
Be it a cup of cola or a glass of alcohol that you are sipping on, more often than not, you ask for a few ice cubes to be added to your drink.
Do you know ordering drinks with ice can be harmful for your health?
According to an article by HuffPost, ice machines is restaurants tend to be contaminated with bacteria, mold or the germs on one's hands.
These contaminants can come from various places. Mold, for instance can build up in ice machines. On the other hand, if one uses an ice scoop without washing the hand and then drops the schoop back into the ice, the cubes become contaminated with the germs on the hands or on the scoop.
In the article, Dr Pritish Tosh, an infectious diseases physician and researcher at the Mayo Clinic, had also mentioned that the main issue was the threat of ice being cross contaminated if it touches the other foods being served.
How to avoid ice contamination
Martin Bucknavage, senior food safety extension associate at the Department of Food Science at Pennsylvania State University, suggested that ice contamination could be avoided with the same safety measures undertaken to treat food.
Cleaning and sanitising ice machines is also extremely important to avoid contamination.
One should always use a clean scoop and even wash one's hands before using it.
So, the next time you visit a bar or a restaurant, make sure to carefully evaluate the place's cleanliness before ordering your drink. The best way would be to avoid consuming ice completely.
Mar 6, 2018
Will new FSSAI rules undercut baby food law?
Does special infant food for certain rare medical conditions have to be kept out of the Infant Milk Substitute (IMS) Act — a law to prevent predatory marketing practices by baby foodcompanies — to ensure their availability? This question sparked a tussle between public health activists and the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI).
Ostensibly to deal with three very rare medical conditions in infants, FSSAI decided to exempt several products from the IMS Act. Baby food companies used this to sponsor doctors and market these special foods, which the IMS Act prohibits. Following protests from health activists, FSSAI clarified that the Act's provisions on marketing, promotion and sponsorship would apply to these special foods, but they would otherwise remain out of its ambit.
The Act is hailed globally as one of the most effective laws to protect breastfeeding against unethical marketing by baby-food companies. As a result, the sale of baby food formula in India is a tiny fraction of that in China, which does not have a similar stringent law.
So why is FSSAI keeping these special foods out of the Act? FSSAI says that since the Act says all baby food labels have to carry a statement "mother's milk is best for your baby" in capital letters, special foods for inborn metabolic errors have to be kept out of the legislation. However, according to the WHO and the American Academy of Paediatrics (AAP), there are only three inborn metabolic diseases in which breastfeeding can harm the baby. Of these, AAP says breastfeeding is an absolute no-no in just one, galactosemia. In the other two, phenylketonuria and maple syrup urine disease, breastfeeding is allowed along with special formula under medical monitoring.
FSSAI's other argument is that products under the IMS Act can be taken on the advice of a health worker, while these special diets need medical supervision.
The problem is that FSSAI has exempted all foods for special medical purposes (FSMPs). FSMPs include formulas for low birth-weight babies, hypoallergenic formulas for babies with cow milk allergy and lactose free formulas. These are already sold in India, regulated by the IMS and FSSAI Acts. They have labels saying that mother's milk is best, an advisory that they are to be used under medical supervision and a label clearly identifying them as infant milk substitutes.
Even before the draft regulation of exemption to these products got approved, FSSAI okayed labels of many of these special foods with a sticker, "This is neither an infant milk substitute nor an infant food". This is the key concern, pointed out Dr Arun Gupta of the Breastfeeding Promotion Network of India, one of four bodies responsible for reporting IMS Act violations. "Will violations under IMS Act attract penalties when the products are being kept out of its purview? The exemption will only create confusion that baby-food companies will take advantage of. The policy to exempt some baby foods from IMS Act is flawed and is the result of partnership with baby food companies," he charged.
NGT imposes environmental compensation on FSSAI
Over indiscriminate disposal of waste
The National Green Tribunal (NGT) on Monday imposed environmental compensation on the Food Safety and Standard Authority of India (FSSAI) and the Central Drug Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) after a plea alleged that poultry farms were degrading the environment with “indiscriminate disposal of waste”.
₹25,000 compensation
A Bench headed by judicial member Jawad Rahim imposed environmental compensation of ₹25,000 on the authorities after they failed to reply to the notice.
The green panel had earlier issued notices to the authorities, including the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) and the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change (MoEF&CC).
The petition, filed by social activist Gauri Maulekhi, claimed that “the level of waste is high as poultry farms have thousands of birds in intensive confinement in each farm. This waste is seldom disposed scientifically and in accordance with law”.
The plea further challenged the guidelines for poultry farms issued in 2015 by the CPCB and subsequent circulars issued by State pollution control boards.
CPCB directions
“Quash the Central Pollution Control Board directions dated February 29, 2016, to the extent as much as it categorises commercial poultry farming as a green industry. Further quash the circulars, guidelines and orders issued by the respective State pollution control boards,” the plea stated.
Poultry farms
The petition also urged the green panel to pass interim directions to “curtail the indiscriminate administration and use of antibiotics in the poultry industry and for their housing and environment.”
FSSAI issues testing methods for five food product types
The Food Safety & Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has issued approved methods for analysis of various food products. These are the standardised testing methods for five different food product types- methods of detection; analysis and estimation of melamine in milk and milk products; total polar compounds in edible oils and fats, estimation of coumarin content in cinnamon, parameters in sago and detection of acid value in oils and fats.
These methods are standardised and would be helpful in uniform testing methods across India, resulting in non-variable results. The country’s apex food regulator said that these methods were approved by the scientific panel on methods of sampling and analysis.
FSSAI may also add further product categories and list their testing methods. In the recent past, the regulators issued a notification which included the maximum levels of total polar compounds (TPCs) that should be present and the testing of the edible oils for the same. New inclusion of training for milk and milk products under the Food Safety Training and Certification (FoSTaC) programme is another example.
Mar 5, 2018
Think before you eat: Vijayawada Roadside food stalls unhygienic
A food stall on the BRTS Road in Vijayawada
VIJAYAWADA: With day temperatures soaring in the city for the last few days, roadside refreshment stalls are mushrooming at every nook and corner in the city. Be it BRTS Road, One Town or Besant Road, most of the stall owners are ignoring basic hygiene, resulting in the spread of water-borne diseases in the city.
Even as raids by food and safety authorities are going on at restaurants, bakeries and tea shops across the city, the vendors of roadside refreshment stalls are making a fast buck by selling fruits and juices without any concern for safety. They are not taking measures to protect food items from files, insects or dust. Even the people are unmindful of the health complications these eatables can cause and are consuming them to beat the scorching heat.
Apart from the carts, some vendors are also selling refreshments and soft drinks made using machines attached to vehicles.
According to sources, most of these vendors are operating without permission. However, Vijayawada Municipal Corporation (VMC) officials said that they are taking necessary measures to prevent the spread of water-borne diseases in summer. Health experts opine that people should avoid fruits exposed to dust and juices prepared in an unhygienic manner sold through roadside stalls.
‘’People should drink plenty of water to avoid dehydration. Natural refreshments like buttermilk and coconut water are always the best choice”, said Dr Ch Praveena, senior physician.
However, the vendors claim that refreshments are safe. “I have been serving refreshments in the city for more than a decade. I have never received complaints from any of my customers,’’ said K Nagarjuna Reddy, a vendor at Seetharampuram.
Eateries need to hire food safety officer to get licence
The draft regulations are being notified and the final regulations will be enforced subsequently.
The food regulator has drafted regulations for restaurants and eateries, requiring them to employ a food safety officer in order to obtain a licence.
The Food Safety & Standards Authority of India also made it mandatory for companies that sell food online to get separate licences under the Food Safety & Standards (Licensing and Registration of Food Business) Amendment Regulations, 2018.
Owners and vendors of food products sold on ecommerce platforms must display their licences or FSSAI registrations. The ecommerce firms will have to ensure that food articles have a pending shelf life of 30% or 45 days before expiry at the time of delivery to consumers. Such food products can be sampled at any point in the supply chain, the authority added.
While applying for a state or central licence, restaurants won’t have to submit blueprints or layout plans, names and lists of equipment and machinery, lists of food categories, copies of certificates obtained under Co-op Act, NOCs from manufacturers and recall plans.
“The revised condition prescribes that a Food Safety Display Board needs to be displayed at a prominent place in the premises and employment of at least one technical person or Food Safety Supervisor trained by Food Safety and Standards Authority of India in case of restaurant,” the regulator said.
“Safety and standards are paramount in running any business which has food for human consumption,” said Rahul Singh, president of the National Restaurant Association of India. “The NRAI welcomes such initiatives as restaurants need to dedicate their resources towards food safety to successful execute measures and develop a culture within their premises to stay committed towards customer safety.”
The draft regulations are being notified and the final regulations will be enforced subsequently.
“All food companies will have to follow these revised regulations with immediate effect and the enforcement of these regulations will commence only after the final regulations are notified in the Gazette of India,” FSSAI said.
The regulator simplified rules for slaughter houses, making minimum sanitary and hygienic requirements mandatory because the earlier requirements were not compatible with the operation of small slaughter houses.
Rules have been laid down for catering companies, including those that provide services at eating houses, canteens at schools, colleges and other institutions, religious places, trains and flights, hospitals and events.
Mar 4, 2018
4 godowns stocking tobacco sealed
Trichy: In a much needed crackdown on the illegal sale of banned tobacco products, the food safety department in Perambalur has sealed 4 godowns that were found to have stocked tobacco products with high nicotine content. The action was taken based on a WhatsApp complaint lodged by locals, in just a week after the district administration and food safety department took up promotion drives to publicise the WhatsApp helpline (94440-42322).
According to food safety officials, they received a WhatsApp complaint alleging that banned tobacco products were sold in a many shops, particularly near the Perambalur bus stand. Acting on this, in a synchronised inspection carried out across the town on Friday evening, food safety officials found banned tobacco products in packets at 4 godowns in Pallivasal Street, Kamarajar Valaivu, Old bus stand and near NSB Road Housing.
Close to 70 kilogram of banned tobacco products were seized in the drive whose worth is said to be between Rs 1 to Rs 1.5 lakh. “We request people to register their complaints on compromises made in food safety using the WhatsApp helpline,” Dr M Sowmiya, designated office, food safety department, Perambalur told TOI.
Import of dressed chicken barred till March 15
Srinagar, Mar 02: Food Safety Department (FSD) has barred import and sale of dressed chicken till March 15 in view of the lack of refrigerated vans for transportation.
The Kashmir Monitor last week reported that tonnes of dressed chicken were imported to the Valley in thermocol boxes, against which FSD apprehended non-maintenance of hygiene in the absence of refrigerated vans.
Assistant Food Safety Officer, Hilal Ahmad Mir, told this newspaper that they have fixed March 15 as deadline for the procurement of refrigerated vans by the dealers.
“So, till March 15, no dressed chicken shall be sold or even imported to the Valley. This decision was taken after these dealers agreed to procure refrigerated vans within two weeks,” he said.
Mir said the department has also directed the dealers to set up their individual cold chains to prevent the chicken from turning unhygienic due to the rise in temperature.
“They will have to store the chicken under favourbale conditions, which is only possible when they set up their cold chain facilities,” he said.
Assistant FSD said that they would harden their stand against the violators including sealing of their outlets.
“Our teams would inspect the dealers regularly after the deadline. Those who are found violating the ruling would face closure of their outlets and legal action,” he said.
Mir earlier said his only apprehension towards dressed chicken was related to the hygiene, especially when the temperature rises.
“It takes these dealers enough time to transport the chicken from New Delhi to Srinagar. So, as temperature increases, there may be chances that it will be infected if it is not transported in refrigerated vans,” he said
Srinagar Wholesale Fish Dealers Association said that they would procure refrigerated vans, but demanded a specific market to ensure all these facilities.
The dealers said majority of their shops function in rented accommodations and require government allotted shops to set up their cold chains.
Mar 1, 2018
State labs in poor condition, working to strengthen them: FSSAI
New Delhi, Feb 28 () Food safety regulator FSSAI CEO Pawan Kumar Agarwal today said food testing labs at state level are in poor condition and serious efforts are being made to strengthen them by providing financial help and capacity building training.
At present, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has total 62 labs spread across the country. Out of which, only 10 are accredited by the National Accreditation Board for Testing & Calibration Laboratories (NABL). The private sector has 150 labs which are all NABL accredited.
"Of course, we continue to face problems with the poor quality of state labs for good reasons perhaps. We are trying to improve these labs," Agarwal said after exchanging the memorandum of agreement (MoU) with AOAC International here.
As per the MoU, the AOAC International -- a globally recognised standards developing organisation -- will offer free access to the official method of analysis to the FSSAI. It will also support FSSAI in its capacity building programmes.
Sharing about the state labs, Agarwal said, "The condition of many of the government labs are not up to the mark as they are still working under transition position."
However, the regulator is closely working with state governments to ensure the labs are strengthened and they come up to the standards that the country deserves, he added.
The FSSAI has decided to strengthen 45 state government labs with financial and capacity building training.
"A significant headway has been made in that, though more rapid progress is required. We have already supported 22 labs and getting more states and more labs on board is now a challenge," he noted.
Since some of the states do not have private lab capacity, the FSSAI CEO said, "The lab capacity even in the private sector in most of North east, Jharkhand, Bihar and Uttarkhand is very poor. That's why we are pursuing state governments to upgrade their labs."
The FSSAI is also pushing the balance 52 government labs to get the NABL accreditation in a year or so.
Besides strengthening primary testing labs, the FSSAI is making efforts to put in place a network of appellate labs or referral labs in the entire food testing ecosystem.
The referral labs are used for testing the samples in times of dispute. The regulator has supported providing equipment to six such labs and plans to support additional five labs, he said.
Also, the regulator has plans to put in place a dozen of them as national reference labs for doing proficiency testing and method development and validations. Basically, the reference labs would act as support structure.
"We have floated an expression of interest (EoI) calling both private and public labs. Over 30 labs have shown interest, we are in in the process of selecting them. May be 10-12 labs can be called as national reference labs."
The FSSAI is also encouraging mobile testing labs. Already 30 such labs are in the field. They do rapid testing and are creating awareness about food safety, he added.Agarwal said that a reasonable amount of work has been done in the area of food testing and analytics in the last one year despite limited human resources.
HC pulls up Govt for delaying appointment of food safety commissioner
The Jammu and Kashmir High Court on Wednesday pulled up State government for delaying the appointment of Commissioner, Food Safety Tribunal.
The state counsel, MI Dar submitted before the court that interim arrangement for the post of Commissioner has been made.
The division bench comprising Justice Mohammad Yaqoob Mir and Justice Ali Mohammad Magrey said that the reason given by the state is not acceptable behind the delay of the appointment.
“Posting of Food Safety Commissioner still appears to be a distant dream. For the last eight months nothing has been done except creation of post of commissioner,” the court said.
The court further granted three week time to the authorities to take all necessary steps for filling up of the post along with strength of staff.
For making the food testing laboratories fully operational, the court was informed that the laboratories have been equipped with required machinery and necessary equipments have also been installed in the labs.
For checking the food vendors, Assistant Commissioner Food Srinagar who was present before the court submitted that special squad has been constituted and action has been initiated against the units’ holders, shopkeepers as also against the vendors for preparing and selling adulterated and unhygienic food.
“The squad is facing certain security concern during checking as they are being attacked by the offenders,” said Assistant Commissioner.
The court directed the SSPs of concerned districts to provide all assistance from their concern police lines wherever they require protection.
Further, the court directed the copy of the order be sent of all SSPs for compliance.
Hoteliers sensitised to good practices
FSSAI coordinator Mansi Thaker conducted the eight-hour session during which she spoke about various aspects of ensuring food quality and hygiene at the hotels and restaurants. Tribune News ServiceAmritsar, February 28The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) organised a camp in association with the Amritsar Hotel and Restaurants Association (AHARA), Civil Lines, here today. Besides, issues such as best practices for cooking and food preservation were also discussed. She also discussed the issues of rodents and pests at the kitchen which is cause of concern from the hygiene point of view. The session was attended by representatives of around 40 well-known hotels and restaurants of the city.
Amritsar, February 28
The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) organised a camp in association with the Amritsar Hotel and Restaurants Association (AHARA), Civil Lines, here today. FSSAI coordinator Mansi Thaker conducted the eight-hour session during which she spoke about various aspects of ensuring food quality and hygiene at the hotels and restaurants. She also discussed the issues of rodents and pests at the kitchen which is cause of concern from the hygiene point of view. Besides, issues such as best practices for cooking and food preservation were also discussed. The session was attended by representatives of around 40 well-known hotels and restaurants of the city. AP Singh Chatha, president, AHARA, said, “The session was very informative for the local food industry.” He said the city was fast developing as a tourist hub and as such demand for hygiene and quality food is ever high. “With over two lakh passengers coming at the international airport, the local food industry needs to give the best quality food to its national and international customers,” said Chatha, adding that the session would help hoteliers in tackling day to day issues related to food safety and standards.
Food safety offenders to be booked under IPC
The KMC health department on Thursday held meeting with state police and food safety officers in a bid to stop the vendors from selling spurious water in packages using labels of registered and widely known companies.
The civic body has decided to crack down against such vendors with the help of state police and Enforcement Branch. Criminal charges will be slapped against the offenders for violation of food safety guidelines and misusing brand names of other companies, said Mr Atin Ghosh, member mayor-in-council (MMIC), health.
Mr Ghosh speaking on the matter said, “We conducted a joint meeting on Thursday in the presence of DG Enforcement Branch (EB) West Bengal and DC, EB, Kolkata along with food safety officers to decide on measures that could be taken against unlicensed vendors violating food safety norms and misusing brand names of other companies.
“A decision has been made that KMC health department will from now on conduct food safety drives along with Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) officials and the collected samples will have to be submitted to the chief municipal health officer along with the concerned food safety authorities.
“The reports of the samples tested in the laboratories will then be submitted to the EB. Following which, the chief municipal officer will request the EB to begin criminal proceedings against the offenders and crack down on their production units to seal them” “The EB will then begin criminal proceedings under IPC sections 272 and 273 against offenders who are selling spurious water in packages using brand names of reputed companies.
The food safety officers in parallel will file cases against the offenders under the FSSAI Act 2006.Regular reports will be submitted to EB concerning food or water adulteration, ” the MMIC said. In addition to these measures, Mr Ghosh added, “The DG enforcement branch has also officially asked us to check for Pollution Control Board (PCB) clearance license for setting up factories. In order to set-up any factory, the PCB clearance is mandatory but it has come to light that several factories are functioning in the city without the clearance which is an illegal act.”
KMC, EB to initiate legal action against adulterated water, food manufacturers
Kolkata: The Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) and the Enforcement Branch have joined hands to act tough and crack the whip on spurious manufacturers and dealers of packaged water in the city and the state.
"The KMC is empowered to take action under the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) Act 2006 against those dealing with adulterated water and food. However, there are some limitations of the FSSAI Act. So in a stride towards overcoming the limitations, the civic body will urge the EB to start criminal proceedings under Section 272 and 273 of IPC against those who compromise with the safety standards of food and water," Member Mayor-in-Council (Health) Atin Ghosh said after holding a meeting with Director General of EB Vijay Kumar and Deputy Commissioner (EB) Kolkata Police Debasis Sarkar along with other senior officials at the KMC headquarters on Wednesday.
The Chief Municipal Officer of Health (CMOH) on behalf of the KMC's food safety unit will now share the findings of all drives related to water and food safety with the EB and will urge the latter to take legal action against those producing packaged water without maintaining proper rules and regulations or indulging in misbranding.
According to Ghosh, apart from the BSI, trade license, fire license and other necessary certificates a manufacturing unit in the city or in the state needs to have a mandatory clearance certificate from the state Pollution Control Board.
"During our checks at production units of food or water, we didn't check whether they had certificates from the PCB as we were not aware of this," Ghosh said.
"This came up for discussion in the meeting and from now on, we will also take this as an integral part of our drive," he added.
It has been decided in the meeting that the KMC food safety officers and EB will be conducting safety drives jointly from now on.
"Wherever we will find any unhealthy activities associated with food and water on the part of any person, we will urge the EB to start criminal proceedings. This will involve sealing of illegal units, seizure of spurious items and legal action as per Section 272 and 273 of IPC that may entail six months imprisonment or a fine of Rs 1,000 or both," Ghosh reiterated.
Feb 28, 2018
Antibiotic use in poultry sector rampant: CSE
Delhi, Feb 27 A green body today slammed an advertisement highlighting that no antibiotics are used in chicken as an "eye wash" and alleged that the use of antibiotics in poultry sector is "rampant".
The Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) slammed the All India Poultry Development and Services Private Limited for its advertisement and said it is "complete misrepresentation".
The advertisement refers to the results of a 2014 study conducted by the CSE on chicken, it said while strongly rejecting the way the study results have been twisted to suggest that there is no misuse of antibiotics in the poultry sector and that the chicken produced is safe.
"This is complete misrepresentation of the facts and the antibiotic misuse practices adopted by the Indian poultry industry. Antibiotic use in poultry sector is rampant.
"They are even using life-saving drugs like colistin to fatten the chicken. There seem to be no genuine attempt by the industry to reduce antibiotic misuse and this advertisement is an eyewash,” the Deputy Director General, CSE, Chandra Bhushan, said.
The advertisement which said that chicken should be eaten as it has a lot of benefits, also went on to say that the Indian poultry industry has already adopted usage of prebiotics, probiotics, phytogenic additives, acidifiers and immuno stimulants as an alternative to antibiotics.
The deputy director general of CSE further said that the industry has ignored the results of its latest 2017 study, which show how poultry farms are breeding grounds of superbugs.
"They are misguiding the nation and trying to dilute their contribution to the problem of antibiotic resistance. This will not help the industry in the long-term. They must act responsibly,” Bhushan said.
Referring to the issue of maximum residue limits (MRLs) in the advertisement, Amit Khurana, a senior programme manager, Food Safety and Toxins team, CSE said that it is a "myopic" view as residue level in food is only one part of the problem.
"Resistant bacteria can also get transferred to handlers and consumers. Unabsorbed antibiotics as well as resistant bacteria in chicken droppings which enter into the environment are a big concern. The problem starts with antibiotic misuse," he said.
Chandra Bhushan further added that India does not have any standards on residue levels in chicken meat.
"Comparing residue results with the MRL of the European Union is meaningless. Our study was aimed at establishing the fact that banned, critical and highly prescribed antibiotics are being misused by the poultry industry – we did not make any comparisons with MRL as India does not have an MRL of its own," Bhushan said.
CSE researchers believe that even after so many years of the issue being highlighted, the government response to address the antibiotic resistance crisis has been inadequate so far.
"There is no legal ban on use of antibiotic growth promoters in poultry. The 2014 advisory from the Department of Animal Husbandry, Dairying and Fisheries has no legal binding.
"The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India is yet to come up with final standards of antibiotic residues in chicken. We have a National Action Plan on AMR now, but unfortunately there are no funds allocated for it. The plan would have no real functionality without money put behind it," Bhushan added.
GOVT BEGINS DRIVE TO CURB FOOD ADULTERATION BEGINS BEFORE HOLI
In a bid to curb food adulteration here in Capital City, the Food Safety Officers (FSOs) have begun the task of food samples collection under the Food Safety and Standard Authority of India (FSSAI) norms. With significant increase in the sale of adulterated edible items (milk and milk products) during the festive seasons Holi and Diwali primarily, the FSOs have been ordered to conduct a massive drive to keep a tab on the defaulters ahead of Holi festival.
“Two teams have been formed to crack the whip on the defaulters. Under each team, three members are there to assist the team leader during the sample collection work and inspection task. The teams which was formed on February 24, through random inspection and survey are enquiring about the condition of edible items,” said, FSO, KP Singh who along with his team are conducting inspection as per the Department’s order here in State Capital.
The team-1 personnel are inspecting and collecting edible product samples from all such confectionery shops falling under the jurisdiction of wards (1 to 35 wards) while another team has been given the responsibility of collecting samples from the shops in wards 36 to 55. As per the FSSAI guidelines, food items sold out in open by the street vendors are supposed to be covered and checked on regular basis as well. However, Singh said that due to lack of trained human resources, they are unable to collect food samples from street vendors.
“In a short notice, we are just able to collect food samples from sweets and confectionary shops only. Besides milk and milk products, the teams are also enquiring about the condition of edible oils being sold ahead of Holi. By far, we have collected six samples from different shops; the checking drive is going on. Street vendors are not being covered.” added Singh.Meanwhile, State Food Analyst, Chatturbhuj Meena said, “All collected food samples are being assessed. At least, 14 days is required for the detailed report preparation. On the basis of the report prepared by lab technicians, actions will be taken accordingly.”Furthermore, the State Food Analyst added that the food safety division is gearing up to launch the first State-of-the-art mobile lab to curb adulteration by facilitating on-the-spot testing of samples at a reasonable price while ensuring timeliness in food samples collection and its assessment.
“The well equipped mobile van will felicitate the need of public in a broad way. The mobile van lab will serve all basic purposes like collecting survey samples, on the spot products verification etc. Soon, it will be formally launched by the State government’s personnel,” Meena further added.
600 Kg Chilli Powder, 100 Kg Salt And 100 Kg Black Gram Seized
Food and Safety officials inspect chilli powder bags that were discarded by unknown persons in Guntur on Saturday.
600 Kg Chilli Powder, 100 Kg Salt And 100 Kg Black Gram Seized
Food safety officials along with Commissioner’s Task Force (CTF) and Bhavanipuram police raided an adulterated chilli manufacturing unit in Bhavanipuram and seized poor quality chilli powder prepared with chilli waste and sawdust. The proprietor was taken into police custody and criminal cases were registered against him.
The officials seized 600 kg chilli powder, 100 kg salt and 100 kg black gram.According to the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) officials, proprietor K Narayana Rao was selling adulterated chilli powder under the name Sudha Enterprises, in a rented house on St. Atkinson High School Road in Bhavanipuram, for the past few months.
Acting on a tip-off, assistant food controller N Purnachandra Rao led the raids and said that labels with brand names Krishna, Mango, Surya and a few others were found at the unauthorised manufacturing unit. They are misbranded and do not have permission, he said.
During the raids, food safety officials observed that the accused was mixing the powder derived after crushing the stems of chilli in a greater proportion than the permissible limits.
Food Safety Concerns
“Chilli powder usually is made by grinding chilli and mixing it with certain ingredients. Instead, Narayana was found using cheap quality chilli and chilli stems, procured from Guntur, and was selling them under various brand names. He had not obtained FSSAI licence to sell the products in the market,” said Purnachandra Rao.
Officials collected samples of chilli powder and sent them to the food analyst. Narayana Rao was also found preparing and selling adulterated coriander powder and curry leaves powder and supplying them to nearby hotels and eateries.
FSDA launches extensive checking of food times ahead of Holi
Meerut: To ensure that Holi is free from adulterated sweets, the Food Safety and Drugs Administration (FSDA) department has formed three teams which will swoop down on shops and pick up samples of edible items for testing. The department will send the samples for testing to a laboratory in Lucknow, and actions against the erring shops will be taken after the test results arrive.
Three teams of five health officials each have been formed, an official privy to the development said. The teams will conduct surprise inspections at shops in rural and urban areas to check adulteration and sale of adulterated items in the market.
With ‘gujhiya’, ‘namkeen’ and cooking oils on their target, the teams will conduct raids in all the busy markets to ensure that people don’t fall prey to adulterated items. The drive will continue till March 5.
“As many as three teams of five persons each have been formed, which will conduct regular checks and send suspicious food items to laboratory for testing. If any sub-standard food item is found, the person will be dealt with as per rules,” said Archana Dheeran, designated officer of FSDA.
The samples will not be sent to the city laboratory, which is situated within the campus of Chaudhary Charan Singh University (CCSU). Rather, they are sent to a laboratory in Lucknow to “avoid any manipulation”.
“The food items are preserved and sent to Lucknow by courier. The result will reach us within 20 days of the courier. But, in some cases, the samples are also sent to local laboratory if they look evidently adulterated,” said Dheeran.
Buyers can also lodge complaints related to food adulteration with the department and their names are kept “under the wraps”, said the official.
“We are focusing mainly on ‘gujhiyas’, ‘mathris’ and other items which are made ahead of Holi,” Dheeran said.
The department officials have also warned people of bright-coloured sweets as they might contain harmful chemicals which cause food poisoning, stomach ache, vomiting and infection.
Petition on food sale without licence: Bombay HC seeks explanation on BMC’s approach to hawkers
The IHRA alleged they cook food without licence and without permission of the municipal corporation. The food is unhygienic and harmful to health and safety of the general public. The petition says it continues despite court orders
The IHRA alleged they cook food without licence and without permission of the municipal corporation
The Bombay High Court Monday directed the municipal commissioner or the assistant municipal commissioner to explain their approach towards hawkers selling food across the city. A petition by the Indian Hotel and Restaurants Association (IHRA) in 2016 had stated that while hotels and restaurant owners need to obtain licences and permissions from various departments of the municipal corporation — heath department, fire brigade and environment department – hawkers on footpaths, public places, roads, gardens or playgrounds prepare food and sell it without any licence and without following rules. The IHRA alleged they cook food without licence and without permission of the municipal corporation.
The food is unhygienic and harmful to health and safety of the general public. The petition says it continues despite court orders. The petition says that hawkers use cooking gas cylinders and electricity unlawfully. Pursuant to an order of the High Court, Neela Patange, Deputy Superintendent of Licence, filed an affidavit Monday stating that the petitioners had not made suppliers of gas cylinders and electricity as parties in the case. The grievance should have been redressed by the company supplying cooking gas to hawkers, said the petition.
A division Bench of AS Oka and RI Chagla said even after the court called these hawkars illegal, no action was taken by BMC officials. The court further said, “It is a complete violation of (rules for) cooking food.” The court pulled up BMC officials and said, “Instead of taking action, you have written to Hindustan Uniliver Limited (the gas cylinder supplier),” The court said it was the duty of BMC officials to go to the spot and inspect, instead of blaming the gas cylinder supplier. The court said, “We direct the municipal commissioner or the assistant commissioner personally to explain the approach of the Mumbai municipal corporation.
Street Food Vendors To Get A Lesson On Hygiene By The FDA
According to the report by the Asian Age, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has begun a food security campaign to keep hygiene of street food in check. This was done post the recommendation received by the FDA from several hospitals as there have been several cases of abdominal pain, diarrhoea and infections.
MAINTAINING STREET FOOD HYGIENE
The FDA plans to train all the hawkers from all the 24 BMC wards and teach them how to maintain personal and stall hygiene. The food co-commissioner of the FDA, Shailesh Adhav said that at a time, 20 hawkers will be trained about hygiene for 20 days. The hawkers will be trained to maintain food quality and hygiene during this period.
“FDA has initiated a food security campaign to educate roadside food sellers about what hygiene standards should be maintained by them,” said Adhav to Asian Age. “We will be training hawkers of all 24 civic body wards under this campaign. An inquiry of roadside sellers will be conducted across all the wards. FDA officials and inspectors will give them lessons such as wearing caps, aprons and maintaining personal and stall hygiene” The report further says that the campaign is currently going on in Mumbai and will later be stretched out to Navi Mumbai and Thane as well.
Feb 27, 2018
Summer fiat to juice shops: Be hygienic
Shops selling juices should have food safety licence/registration and it should be displayed properly.
KOCHI: Doubtful about the quality of the juice you consume while on the move on a hot day? Check if the shop owner has displayed his/her registration/license. Its display is one of the 20 points the commissionerate of food safety is going to enforce strictly in the state, given the rising complaints about the quality of ready-to-use products as mercury levels rise. As per the food safety commissionerate, shop-keepers should buy articles such as fruits, ice, sugar, nuts and others used to make fruit salad, juices, shakes, faluda ands such stuff from shops with food safety licence/registration. They should keep the bills for the same, record in a register and present them in case of an inspection by food safety officials.
The charter insists that shop-keepers take water from clean sources, get a report on it taken once in six months from a recognised analytical lab and keep them at the shop. The water and articles used for making juice should be kept closed in food grade vessels. Fruits must be of good quality, are cleaned and kept inside a refrigerator. Ice should be kept inside the freezer or clean vessels or ice box; use of thermocol for the purpose is banned. The water and ice should keep the prescribed standards.
Exclusive food grade vessels should be used for keeping cut fruits and juices in freezers; but they cannot be kept for long duration. Milk kept in freezers beyond the expiry date should not be used. Milk should also conform to prescribed standards. The conditions are not applicable for packaged juices but the conditions stipulated on their packets on expiry date and others should be conformed to.
Shops must keep medical fitness certificate of the staff; those having skin or contagious diseases should not be employed. The premises, the utensils and machines like mixie, the knives and other articles and the staff should keep hygiene. Every utensil should be kept lizard, cockroach and rat- proof. There should be provision to remove waste safely.
Refrigerator and freezer should be cleaned at regular intervals and it should be displayed in a chart. Every article should be cleaned before closing each day. The premises where juice is made should be made of stainless steel/marble that does not absorb water. “The standards have been in place ever since the Food Safety Act, 2006, rules 2011 and regulations 2011 have come into force,” food safety commissioner Veena N. Madhavan said. “We shall now enforce them strictly and slap criminal cases on violators.”
Feb 26, 2018
Inter-district special squad closes down seven hotels
Thiruvananthapuram: Food safety department has initiated steps to ensure clean and safe food in hotels and restaurants in the capital ahead of Attukal pongala.
In a surprise inspection conducted on Sunday, an inter-district special squad served closure notice to seven hotels in areas where pilgrims will be offering pongala. This is in addition to the closure of four hotels in the area in the past week.
The surprise inspection conducted in areas such as Attukal, Manacaud, Kamaleswaram, Attakulangara, Kuriathy, Killippalam, PRS Bund Road and Thampanoor has found that several hotels were functioning in unhygienic conditions despite the department serving improving notices earlier.
The hotels, which were served closure notices include 24 Inn cafe, Cafe Anjanam, Pappa restaurant and coolbar, Green Café, and Magic Juice and Bites (all near KSRTC bus stand Thampanoor), Hotel Panchali at East Fort and Soorya Fast food at Killipalam.
Ten squads, consisting of food safety officials from Kottayam, Alappuzha, Pathanamthitta and Kollam districts and headed by food safety assistant commissioner of Kollam K Ajit Kumar and technical assistant G Gopakumar conducted inspections from Sunday morning. A total of 223 hotels, restaurants and food business units were inspected. Of these 75 were served improvement notices. A fine of Rs 1.76 lakh was slapped on 37 units.
Food safety commissioner Veena N Madhavan said that strict inspections will be conducted in view of pongala festival in the coming days too.
In a separate inspection, which is being conducted since Tuesday, Annapathi Chat Store in Fort, Devan Fresh Juice in Pazhavangadi, Hotel Aswathy near Attukal Temple and Krishna Deppam at Kalady were served closure notice for their failure to comply with food safety norms.
Food safety officials said that a slew of reasons ranging from presence of rodents and fungus-infested vegetables to use of banned artificial colours are reasons behind serving closure notice to various food business units. Food safety assistant commissioner A K Mini said that the department has deployed 6 squads, consisting of a total of 28 members, to conduct inspections across 31 wards in areas where pilgrims will be offering pongala. “These squads will function 24 hours during festival time. A 24-hour control room too has started functioning. Organizations and individuals engaged in ‘annadanam’ must register at the control room. We have also tested samples of water from Attukal area,” she said.
Last year, the registrations for annadanam had crossed 500. Food safety department is expecting more people to register this year.
The department is also keeping surveillance on ice candy manufacturers which are often found to have presence of banned colours and artificial sweeteners.
In case of complaints, food safety department can be contacted at 8943346198, 8943346525, 8943346582 and 7593873324. Also toll-free number 1800 425 1125 is available. Sources at the food safety department said that name and details of the complainant will be kept confidential.
Secunderabad Cantonment home to 500 eateries, but no food inspector
The Secunderabad Cantonment is considered one of the largest cantonments in the country in terms of population and area.
Cantonment has over five hundred eateries in the form of hotels, restaurants, tiffin centres, bakeries etc.
Hyderabad: The Secunderabad Cantonment is considered one of the largest cantonments in the country in terms of population and area. But it has no designated food safety section or even a food inspector to conduct regular inspections of the food and its quality.
There is no one to check the adulteration of milk, oil and food products or even the artificial ripening of fruits, all of which have a direct bearing on the health of citizens.
Cantonment has over five hundred eateries in the form of hotels, restaurants, tiffin centres, bakeries etc. Other than these there are several ‘curry points,’ milk booths, fruit shops and roadside ‘bandis’ selling fast food and snacks.
According to Food Safety and Standards regulations, there should be at least one food inspector for every 50,000 population in urban areas.
The Cantonment population is roughly 3 lakh, but it does not boast of a dedicated food inspector.
Former vice-president Jampana Pratap felt SCB top brass should focus on food safety measures now that the population is on the rise every year and so are the revenues in the form of different taxes.
“A separate wing has to be created and professionals who have the requisite training and certification have to be recruited if needed. The health of citizens should be of paramount importance,” he stressed.
At present if any complaints are received by the board, the health and sanitation wing swings into action and conducts inspections in hotels or eateries because of the lack of a dedicated wing.
Experts say fines can be imposed based on poor hygiene conditions because as per rules, the quality of food has to be checked by a food safety officer, who alome has the authority to take action.
Otherwise, officials’ arguments will not stand in a court of law. SCB sources said that one of the health department officials obtained the necessary certification, but food inspector designation was not given. A letter was written to Southern Command in Pune to give permission to SCB to use the staff member’s services as a food inspector, but no clearance was given. Meanwhile, CEO S.V.R.Chandrashekar said that he was not aware of any such development.
SCB vice-president J.Rama Krishna stated that a food safety wing ws the need of the hour. “We are working on cadre restructuring and part of this is appointing a licenced food inspector,” he said.
Feb 25, 2018
Is India’s food safety authority above Parliament?
The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) is working in partnership with the baby food industry, which is in the limelight for violating an Indian law enacted for the safety and health of children in 1992: In whose interest?
Indian Parliament enacted the Infant Milk Substitutes Feeding Bottles, and Infant Foods (Regulation of Production, Supply and Distribution) Act 1992, and Amendment Act 2003 (IMS Act) as a follow up of the “International Code of Marketing for Breastmilk Substitutes”. Members of Parliament recognised that commercial promotion of baby foods leads to inappropriate feeding practices and is a health hazard for infants and young children, contributing to malnutrition, disease and deaths. This Act bans any kind of promotion of infant milk substitutes, infant foods and feeding bottles (products under its scope) by any means. It also bans sponsorships of doctors and their associations directly or indirectly by the manufactures.
This Act is under threat by the action of Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) to exempt four types of baby foods from the IMS Act and its regulations. It has redefined them as foods for special medical purposes (FSMPs) in its communications and proposals. FSMPs include infant milk substitutes for premature/low birth weight babies, for babies with allergy to cow’s milk, for babies with lactose intolerance and for those suffering from inborn errors of metabolism.
It is no surprise. This is the result of FSSAI’s project “Diet4Life” in partnership with Infant and Young Child Nutrition Council of India (IYNCI), which is a front organisation of four leading baby food companies, namely, Abbot, Nestle, Danone and Mead Johnson, masquerading as an NGO.
What has gone wrong?
The project Diet4Life intends to import special foods for medical purposes for children suffering from “inborn errors of metabolism” and educate parents and doctors about it. While the project focuses on IEMs the exemption is granted to all FSMPs.
Following facts substantiate this assertion.
Firstly, the FSSAI provides a blanket exemption to these companies that their FSMPs do not come under the preview of IMS Act. Statement on its website substantiates this fact.
“...These foods are neither infant milk substitute nor infant food but are intended to meet special medical needs arising out of rare disorders/medical conditions. These foods are required to be consumed under medical supervision. These foods are covered under special category of foods defined as Foods for Special Medical Purposes (FSMP) which are out of scope of the Infant Milk Substitutes, Feeding Bottles and Infant foods (Regulation of Production, Supply and Distribution) Act, 1992.”
Secondly, the FSSAI has already approved labels of such foods with a statement that appears on the labels that these “are neither infant milk substitutes nor infant foods”.
Thirdly, the FSSAI issued a call for comments (now closed) on a notification that proposes to exempt the FSMPs from the IMS Act.
Out of four types of foods included in the FSMP list, in three types, babies should be following norms for breastfeeding. In the case of babies with IEM, according to WHO, there is one disease among a range of diseases, where breastfeeding is absolutely contraindicated and in all others breastmilk is given partially. While importing these special foods one would not see any problem, why FSSAI is interested in exemption from IMS Act. The IMS Act does not interfere to achieve all the objectives set by “Diet4Life” project.
Therefore the question: Is FSSAI above Parliament? Should Indian lawmakers be worried?
The IMS is under threat now. What FSSAI is doing is contrary to the spirit of Parliament. Therefore, lawmakers should be worried.
There are two issues here. One is allowing free hand to baby food companies to market its products in any manner whatsoever, and the other is institutional conflict of interest. For the readers let me explain these one by one.
On the first issue, the baby food industry has already taken advantage of this partnership as evidenced by sponsorship of National Conference of the National Neonatology, in December 2017. Sponsorship of such conferences is banned under the IMS Act. When asked, the organisers said we have the permission from Government of India. This is a tactic that the baby food industry uses commonly. These companies have a huge stake to undermine breastfeeding systematically in health facilities, through their relationship with health workers. In the guise of promoting or informing the doctors of this rare disorder and products for use, the baby food industry gets a free hand for surrogate marketing.
The second issue is that there is an institutional conflict of interest in the FSSAI governance. IYNCI, an NGO of four baby food companies, sits in the steering committee/expanded steering committee for IEMs on of the FSMP. The CAG’s report on Implementation of Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 tabled in Parliament, also noted that “FSSAI has, for some food categories, entrusted the task of suggesting revision of standards to representatives of the Food Business Operators (FBO), whose opinions cannot be considered unbiased”.
WHO calls these products as “breastmilk substitutes”, which is equivalent to what “infant milk substitutes” in the IMS Act are.
Why can’t the IMS Act run concurrently with the FSSAI’s project? Several international frameworks and countries do regard FSMPs as breastmilk substitutes. Why can’t India do the same?
In conclusion, this is a flawed proposal of exemption moved by FSSAI, and should be withdrawn. It may reach both Houses of Parliament. Lawmakers should reject it outright to save the IMS Act they had so proudly enacted in the interest of India’s children.
Dr Arun Gupta is a senior paediatrician, working as regional coordinator Asia for International Baby Food Action Network (IBFAN). IBFAN is a Right Livelihood laureate 1998.
Adulterated chilli racket busted in Vijayawada after officials raid unit
A spurious chilli powder racket was busted at Gollapudi in Vijayawada on Friday by officials of the Bhavanipuram police, task force, and Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI).
The raid was conducted on Sudha Enterprises in Bhavanipuram, where officials found huge quantities of substandard chilli powder, made from crushing the stems.
According to reports, Sudha Enterprises was run by one Grandhi Narayana Rao, who procured the inferior quality chilli powder for Rs 30 per kg, allegedly re-packed it, and sold it for Rs 50 to Rs 60 per kg.
The officials reportedly seized 600 kg of chilli powder in the raid, along with 100 kg of salt and black gram.
“Chilli powder usually is made by grinding chilli and mixing it with certain ingredients. Instead, Narayana was found using cheap quality chilli and chilli stems, procured from Guntur, and was sellingthem under various brand names. He had not obtained FSSAI licence to sell the products in the market,” assistant food controller N Purnachandra Rao was quoted as saying.
In December 2016, a crackdown on adulterated chilli powder by the Commissionerate of Food Safety (CFS) found a total of 3.09 tonnes or 3,000 kg of misleading or falsely-labelled product in a span of a few weeks across the state.
Officials said that it was almost impossible to tell the difference unless the product was clinically tested, as they looked exactly the same. This made it even more dangerous, as it is difficult to identify.
At the time, officials said that there were two main chemicals - red oxide and Rhodamine-B. When Rhodamine-B is mixed with water, it creates a red coloured chemical, which can be mixed with a certain powder, to create a product that looks exactly like chilli powder.
Red Oxide was also added in some cases, officials had said at the time.
Kolkata Municipal Corporation set to seal illegal water units
KOLKATA: A joint team of the Kolkata Police Enforcement Branch (EB) and KMC has zeroed in on firms producing packaged drinking water without a valid licence. Some of these units are selling unsafe water in bottles bearing labels of prominent brands.
“We have come to know about the existence of few such units but some of them are located beyond KMC jurisdiction. We need to initiate a joint drive with help from state EB and municipalities concerned. Most of these factories are located either in Sonarpur or Rajarhat,” said a KMC health official.
In past five days, the team has raided several units producing packaged drinking water in and around Kolkata. The team, which has visited 23 units within the KMC jurisdiction, has planned a bigger operation next week when the EB is likely to seal some of the illegal units.
“We won’t do anything in a hurry. But we won’t let anyone escape. The KMC and the police will take action against the offenders,” mayor Sovan Chatterjee said.
Atin Ghosh, mayor-in-council member overseeing the KMC health department, categorically stated that the EB will have to be more active and ensure that the bottling plants were sealed. “Once these unlicenced units are closed down, it will be easier for us to take action against owners of bottling plants who are producing packaged water with a licence but have failed quality test,” said a KMC health department official.
According to the official, the civic body can lodge a lawsuit against errant owners according to a provision of Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI). If charges are proved, s/he can be imprisoned for six months and need to pay a maximum penalty of Rs 1lakh.
DC (EB) Debasis Sarkar said they are in talks with KMC about the next course of action. “KMC has begun legal proceedings under the Food Safety and Security Act. We are looking into all legal options. We will assist KMC in very possible manner,” said Sarkar.
Factories producing packaged drinking water without licence under scanner
KOLKATA: A joint team of Kolkata Police Enforcement Branch (EB) and Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) has zeroed in on a section of factories producing packaged drinking water without a valid licence.
The team is gearing up to take action against these with the help of state EB since some of these illegal manufacturing units are located outside the KMC jurisdiction.
In the past five days, a joint team of EB and KMC raided several shops and manufacturing units producing packaged drinking water in and around Kolkata.
During the raids, the joint team visited 23 units producing bottled water within the KMC jurisdiction. The joint team has planned a bigger operation next week when the EB is supposed to seal some of the manufacturing units which are running illegally.
The message was clear from the city mayor Sovan Chatterjee who had taken up the matter with the city police commissioner Rajeev Kumar and asked him to take stern measures against producers of spurious packaged drinking water.
“We won’t do anything in hurry. But we won’t let anyone escape. Both the KMC and the police will take action against the offenders,” Chatterjee said.
Atin Ghosh, member, mayor-in-council overseeing the KMC health categorically stated that the EB would have to be more active and ensure that the packaged water bottling plants were sealed so that the spurious water containers are prevented from flooding city markets.
“Once these unlicensed units are closed down, it will be easier for us to take action against the owners of the bottling plants who are producing packaged water with a licence, but quality of water has failed to pass our laboratory test,” said a KMC health department official.
According to the KMC official, the civic body can lodge a lawsuit against the errant owners according to a provision of Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI). If charges are proved against the owner of a packaged water producing unit, he/she can be imprisoned for six months and need to pay a maximum penalty of Rs 1 lakh.
According to a KMC health department official at this point of time, the civic body was more concerned with a section of packaged drinking water manufacturing units which are selling water to market with a label of prominent packaged drinking water brands.
“We have come to know about the existence of few such units but some among these are located beyond the KMC jurisdiction. We need to initiate a joint drive with the help from state EB and municipalities concerned. Most of these factories are either located in Sonarpur in the southern fringe or Rajarhat in the northern fringe,” said a senior KMC health department official.
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