Jul 18, 2018
Food safety officers appointed
Eight Food Safety Officers have been appointed for Virudhunagar district.
The jurisdiction of seven municipalities and 11 panchayat unions have been revamped to six municipalities and two panchayat unions. People can alert and lodge complaints about food adulteration and serving of eatables under unhygienic conditions in this district to the Food Safety Officers.
New food safety officers
District Collector S. Prabhakar said that new food safety officers have been appointed in the district and asked the public and food business operators to contact them for clarifications.
Officials include K. Ravi – Erode City 1 (97503-69495); S. Selvam – Erode City 2 (89733-20229); E. Govindaraj – Erode City 3 (94430-11687); M. Muthukrishnan – Bhavani Municipality, Erode block (77080-90043); S. Kulandaivel – Gobichettipalayam municipality (99765-88656); P. Neelamegam – Punjai Puliyampatti municipality; Bhavani Sagar (98429-12322); N. Sathishkumar – Nambiyur block (73730-20734); C. Manoharan – Perundurai block (99445-19671); P. Ezhil Sekiya Raja – Kodumudi block (98656-89838); A.A. Palanisamy – Modakurichi block (93855-69322); M. Lakshmi – Bhavani, Ammapet block (95005-28466); M. Kodeeswaran – Anthiyur block (98433-58056); S. Selvakumar – Talavadi block (73731-78787) and M. Sakthivel – Gobichettipalayam and T.N. Palayam blocks (90956-02246).
Formalin found in samples
Fish in a few hotels have tested positive; vendors alerted
A few samples of fish lifted from a couple of hotels in the city have tested positive for formalin.
Hotel industry sources, which confirmed the findings, said they had informed their vendor, and had asked him to check with his source. “We returned the contaminated fish and have asked him not to source from that person again,” the sources said.
Most hotels have tie ups with laboratories or have in-house testing facilities to check for quality of items used in cooking.
A source at one laboratory said that of 30-odd samples collected, 5 to 6 showed traces of the chemical. While the kits may not work below a particular level, even traces are enough to confirm the presence. “The standard is that formalin should be absent in fish,” said a source.
On watch
After reports of formalin in fish surfaced, hotels have been on the watch.
“We have not found any chemical content so far in the fish that we buy. We are taking daily samples and checking at our in-house facility. We have educated our vendor about the dangers and asked him to be careful while making purchases,” said a hotelier. However, none of the 19 samples lifted by the Food Safety Department tested positive for formalin at their lab in Guindy, authorities claimed.
Note issued
Meanwhile, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India has issued a note.
It has advised consumers to thoroughly wash fish with running water since the chemical is soluble in water and washing will aid the removal of the chemical to a large extent.
It also said that formaldehyde was not permitted as per the Food Safety and Standards Regulations, 2011.
Stale meat, biriyani seized from hotels, destroyed
Stale poultry meat and biriyani, along with soft drinks stored beyond their date of expiry, were seized by Food Safety Officials from two hotels in Charring Cross here on Tuesday and destroyed.
Officials said that a team, led by Designated Food Safety Officer Karunanidhi, along with Food Safety Officers from the Ooty, Coonoor, and Gudalur municipal areas, D. Nandakumar, S. Govindaraj and S. Senthil Kumar, inspected six hotels in the Charring Cross area on Tuesday, as part of a routine exercise.
However, the officials said that they found that chicken and biriyani at two of the hotels had been prepared a few days ago and had been stored inside a freezer to be reheated and sold to the public.
They seized 15 kg of chicken and 5 kg of stale biriyani from the two hotels and destroyed the items. They also destroyed around 20 litres of soft drinks which were kept in the stores beyond their date of expiry. They warned the hotel owners of stern action, including cancellation of their licence if the offence was repeated.
Comply with food safety norms’
Amritsar, July 17
In order to make hoteliers comply with the safety guidelines under “Tandarust Punjab” mission and Food Safety and Standards Authority of India guidelines, the health department is sending messages to the owners on daily basis on their phones.
District Health Officer Dr Lakhbir Singh Baghowalia, the brain behind the idea, said, “We send a message every morning in which we remind them about how many days are left to comply with the instructions.”
Earlier, the department in a meeting chaired by deputy commissioner and attended by hoteliers asked them to comply with the food safety guidelines within seven days.
“The purpose is to keep reminding the hotel owners about the instructions so that they cannot excuse themselves from the liability later,” said Baghowalia.
“Under the mission, ensuring sale of hygienic food is one of the foremost targets. The hoteliers should also consider it as their ethical and moral duty to ensure good quality food is served to the customers as playing with someone’s health for a little money is immoral,” he added.
Food Safety officials raid restaurant
Collect samples of some dishes
Officials of Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) conducted raids on Alfa Restaurant in the city and collected samples of some dishes.
They served notices on the restaurant management on poor hygienic conditions and for preserving meat for a long period.
The team led by Assistant Food Controller N. Purnachandra Rao conducted surprise checks on Tuesday, on the restaurant located in the city and other branch, being run by the same management.
They found chicken, mutton and other items preserved in the refrigerators in the restaurant.
“We collected samples of Chicken Tanduri and Chicken Biryani, which would be sent for testing,” said Mr. Purnachandra Rao.
Food Inspector G. Venkateswara Rao said that there was no food licence for the restaurant. The case is under investigation, Mr. Rao said.
Food inspectors recruitment: High Court impleads PSCs of Telugu States
PIL filed against unchecked incidence of artificial ripening of fruits
Hyderabad High Court on Tuesday suo motu impleaded the Public Service Commissions of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh in a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) petition to ascertain details of recruitment of Food Inspectors in the two Telugu States.
The petition seeking action by governments of the two States against usage of chemicals like calcium carbide for artificial ripening of fruits was heard by a division bench comprising Thottathil B. Radhakrishnan and Justice Ramesh Ranganathan. During earlier hearings, the HC observed that absence of adequate number of food safety officers was becoming a stumbling block in checking artificial ripening of fruits.
This was emboldening fruit merchants to indulge in indiscriminate usage of chemicals for ripening fruits, posing a health hazard. The HC sought to know the systems and hierarchy of food safety mechanisms in both the States.
On Tuesday, the Special Government Pleaders for AP and Telangana, D. Ramesh and Sanjeev Kumar respectively, submitted to the bench the strength of the Food Inspectors they had. They explained that the Food Inspectors were being recruited in the two States through their respective PSCs.
Lawyer Niranjan Reddy, who was appointed as amicus curiae by the HC for assistance in the matter, brought to the notice of the bench on Tuesday that the two States had been claiming about recruiting Food Safety officers for past several months. The same submissions were being made repeatedly, he said. On hearing both sides, the bench decided to implead the PSCs of the two States to ascertain details about the appointments of food safety officers before finalising the petition.
Jul 17, 2018
Food safety cannot be left to chance: Time to incentivise states for action
To reduce the economic burden due to foodborne disease, India needs to invest in ensuring food safety for the masses.
Food-borne Disease Burden
The foodborne disease burden is a global concern both in terms of human sufferings and economic costs. The global burden of foodborne illnesses in 2010 was 600 million cases worldwide, with 4,20,000 deaths. The burden in South-East Asia alone, including India, is about 150 million cases and 1,75,000 deaths, with India having the highest mortality (60,000 to 70,000 deaths in 2016) for children under five years of age, and an estimated economic burden of foodborne illnesses. A recent World Bank report (2018) estimated that the annual economic costs of foodborne illness were to the tune of about $28 billion (Rs 1,78,100 crore) or around 0.5 per cent of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) every year.
FSSAI as regulator
Food Safety and Standard Authority (FSSAI) being the apex regulatory body, is having important responsibilities and functions to perform to ensure food safety in the country. As per our evaluation, in the last six months of the year 2018, FSSAI has come out with more than 50 well appreciated proposals or initiatives to revise the existing regulations, standards, food safety practices, guidelines, norms testing methods, etc. and some of them are as follows:
FSSAI issued an alert on chocolates with plastic fragments; set norms for safe and healthy food to children in schools; warned food operators for artificial ripening of fruits; showed safe driving message on alcoholic beverages; indicated calorie count on restaurants’ menu; launched the Food Safety & Standard (organic foods) Regulation, 2017; notified E-commerce; banned advertisement of HFSS products for children; declared life imprisonment for milk adulteration; planning to limit trans fats in oils and vanaspati by 2 per cent by 2022; and most recently, it amended law to stop reuse of edible oils. FSSAI also set standards for millets, pulses, alcohols, fruits and vegetables, seasoning food products and oil and fat categories, and has organised so many awareness and orientation programmes for different stakeholders in the country.
However, the hope that FSSAI completes the due work of revising the standards and regulations, puts in place a basic structure of implementation and builds an ecosystem in the country for food safety by the end of 2018 as mentioned.
Besides, hope that there would not be much criticism of the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) about its overall performance this year, and if at all there, they are addressed effectively and urgently.
States need to be incentivised & outperform
In the beginning of this year, Health Ministers from different states adopted a joint resolution with seven-point charter and agreed to enhance state of food safety in India.
Until last financial year (2016-17), despite having online registration system only 7,92,780 licenses and 3039762 registrations of FBOs have been done by the states. Among the states, Maharashtra provided licenses and registrations to 2,05,688 and 6,91,285 registrations to FBOs (Food Business Operators), followed by Uttar Pradesh with (4,02,072) registrations.
In India, total 4,398 officials are looking after the food safety sector across the states. Among the states, Uttar Pradesh has maximum i.e. 842 officials followed by Tamil Nadu with 644 officials.
In 2016-17, total 60,671 samples were analysed, 14,130 were found adulterated, 10,640 cases were registered against the offenders, but only 1,596 cases were convicted. Out of the total convicted 80 per cent (1,273 cases) were from Uttar Pradesh alone and in north-eastern states — Rajasthan, Punjab and Odisha not even a single conviction was reported.
During the year, in 3,978 cases penalty was imposed and total penalty amount was `14.8 crore. In India, there are total 125 NABL Accredited Food laboratories, 72 Public Food laboratories and only 16 Referral Food laboratories, which are not sufficient at all.
If states intend to enhance the food safety, they need to develop key infrastructure, such as putting in place the implementation and monitoring mechanism, develop capacity at all level, develop cold chains, storage facilities, better testing capacity, crop protection and animal health which they are currently lacking.
To reduce the economic burden due to foodborne disease, India needs to invest in ensuring food safety for the masses. If we see the current funds at the disposal to FSSAI for food safety from grant in aid and other sources, this is not more than `75 crore per year (around 20 percent of this money remains unspent every year). Therefore, earmarking merely 1 per cent of the cost of the foodborne disease, which comes around `18 billion per year, and providing more to the states, to begin with, can solve the problem.
Self-compliance and cross learning can give answers
Since the food safety compliance by the states, has been a weak area, the approach of FSSAI of self-compliance by the businesses and building their capacities to do so seem to be rewarding. It would also be good to introduce third-party auditing, so that instead of food inspector or FSO, the third-party can do the compliance verifications. The usage of more and more state of the art technology, online platforms, etc. would be very useful and will rebuild the much eroded consumer confidence about food safety.
India is actively learning the modernised techniques from various developed nations and all our neighbouring countries like Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan are striving hard to learn the same from India. The International Cooperation Cell of FSSAI, in last three years, has signed official MoUs for experience sharing and others, with more than 10 to 15 countries, including the USA, the UK, France, Germany and the Netherlands, which hold top world ranking in food safety performance. But the question is that why not our states learn from each other when so many best practices are around. If states remain laxed and are not incentivised, it is unlikely for India to ensure food safety in its nearfuture.
No clean food in India?
The formalin scare has gripped the nation, after huge quantities of fish laced with the substance—a known carcinogenic chemical primarily used for stopping decomposition of corpses—have been seized across the country. This has not only taken fish off the household menu but, more importantly, brought into focus the problem of food adulteration.
The crackdown on formalin, however, has been restricted to banning fish from the breeding states rather than trying to uproot the menace. The half-baked reaction of governments to the wilful contamination of fish is symptomatic of a deep-seated malaise. Food adulteration in India has reached dangerous levels with nothing edible spared from the unscrupulous practice. Rampant adulteration using toxic chemicals and synthetic colours is ruining people’s health.
The figures presented by the health ministry in Parliament earlier this year are a glaring pointer. Almost one in four food samples tested in 2016-17 has been found to be adulterated. And it is rising—from 19.5 per cent in 2014-15 to 23.4 per cent in 2016-17.The Supreme Court has said that access to food free from harmful substances such as pesticides is a fundamental right. Consumption of adulterated food might be playing a role in the alarming rise of heart, kidney and liver diseases, diabetes and cancer in the country. Sadly, this aspect is the most overlooked and of the lowest priority, for the Central as well as state governments.
A lack of awareness among the public notwithstanding, the regulatory, monitoring and enforcement mechanisms are just not up to the mark. Prevention is the key, and it can only be achieved with the help of a robust quality control system and action against violators. The new Consumer Protection Bill with stringent punishment for adulteration should be passed in Parliament, and the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India’s proposal for life imprisonment sentences for adulterers be implemented. For the fear of punishment can be an effective deterrence.
FSSAI nudges food firms to disclose accurate nutrition value
Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has recently launched the Eat Right Movement in a bid to encourage food companies to make accurate disclosures of the nutritional values or calorific value of foods. Additionally, the movement also aims to make consumers aware of the salt, sugar and sodium levels or fat content in the products they purchase or foods they consume.
The positioning statement adopted to forward the movement is Aaj Se, Thoda Kam (which encompasses the ‘Eat Healthy and Eat Safe’ idea). FSSAI has roped in Bollywood actor RajKummar Rao as its ambassador for the campaign. Apart from creating awareness among consumers, the movement is looking to push food businesses to reformulate their products/foods to a newer, healthier variety. In addition to players from FMCG corporations, QSRs and restaurants pledging their support and involvement to the movement, the edible oil industry, bakeries and ‘halwais’ have committed to phase out trans-fat from their products by 2022.
Pawan Agarwal, CEO, FSSAI, shares that companies are also being advised to take it upon themselves to self-assess and monitor. FSSAI is also looking at plugging loopholes in advertising that companies can leverage with regards to the claims they make. He points out, “Voluntary commitment does not mean the regulations will not come in. Regulation will come in nevertheless. But when this does happen, the transition will be quicker and less painful for food businesses.”
But not all stakeholders are onboard with the blanket approach of recalibrating ingredient quantities of their products. This is truer for companies that already have comparatively low levels of salt, sugar and fats in their products. Anil Talreja, partner, Deloitte points out that one of the main reasons why some of the brands are hesitant to implement the movement is because they believe that it simply adds another layer of regulations to the existing heavily regulatory framework governing food products. He says, “The proposed measures will not only cause an increase in the costs of additional compliances but will also lead to more complexity in so far as regulations like labelling are concerned.” Companies will have no option but to comply with any changes in the regulations proposed.
In case of restaurants, unless checks and balances are strictly maintained and recipes don’t largely change over time in terms of the quantities of salt, sugars and fat levels or calorie counts in them, standardisation can be an issue. Beyond a point, people want to have fun and they will eat what they really feel like, points out Anjan Chatterjee, founder and managing director, Speciality Restaurants.
Speaking on belonging to the segment of restaurateurs that are proactively achieving recipe standardisation, Chatterjee says that companies just need to go the extra step and say that they will also seriously start looking at the calorie value of their foods.
“Whenever governance comes in, obviously, there are going to be some people that won’t care for it. But it is going to be the next step in the industry,” he says.However, it may be prudent to say that the chain of events could go from taking the stakeholders, institutions and bodies along, educating them and then putting governance in play.
32 food samples collected
Safety mobile van making it easy to check adulteration
Members of the team pose for a photograph in front of the food safety van in Jalandhar.
Jalandhar, July 16
A food safety mobile van, which especially came to the city to conduct quality checks on the food items being consumed by the people of the city visited the Model Town, Guru Amardas Chowk and Bhargo Camp areas on Monday. On the instructions of Civil Surgeon Dr Jaspreet Kaur Sekhon, food safety officer Divya Bhagat and her team conducted sampling.
As many as 32 food samples were checked, in which marginal adulteration was found.
Informing about the action, Food Safety Officer, Divya Bhagat said the Punjab government has been regularly trying to implement the Food Safety Act strictly to ensure that people get non-adulterated food to eat.
She said while so far, the department teams were only getting samples from shops, which were then being sent to Chandigarh, and the adulteration in the samples was detected only after the report was received.
But with the food safety vans, the samples are being checked on the spot. She said any resident could get samples checked by paying a meagre government fee of Rs 50, per sample.
On Monday, health teams checked 32 food samples. These included samples of besan, cheese, milk, curd, ghee, garam masala, red chilly among others.
During this many people got food stuff from their homes their homes checked. During the action, only a ‘besan’ sample was found to be of substandard quality. It was adulterated with rice four.
Any resident can get food sample checked
Health teams checked 32 food samples on Monday. These included samples of besan, cheese, milk, curd, ghee, garam masala, red chilly among others. With the food safety vans, the samples are being checked on the spot. Any resident can get samples checked by paying a meagre government fee of Rs 50, per sample.
Why are we forced to eat toxic food?
If you are a foodie, you may not want to read this.
Food adulteration has become so rampant in India that there are high chances that what you eat today is dipped in or laced with noxious chemicals. Be it vegetables, fruits, milk, honey, fish, meat or processed food, you can’t trust the perishable stuff you buy from the market, retail stores or shopping malls. Some of them are undeniably carcinogenic and deadly.
A few months ago, the Department of Animal Husbandry, Dairying and Fisheries issued a direction to all states to conduct random sampling of milk at village level for detecting adulteration particularly of edible oil, sucrose and even detergents. States were also advised to install milk adulteration testing equipment immediately across villages. Nothing seems to have worked, the adulteration of milk continues unabated.
As a routine, fruits and veggies are washed in chemicals and wax for better shelf life while fruits are artificially ripened using chemicals.
Recently, Kerala cops swooped on seafood that arrived from neighbouring states and seized tonnes of them preserved in formalin and ammonia. Traders from Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh, along with wholesalers in Kerala, are being probed under Operation Sagar Rani, and seafood consignments to the southern state have slowed to a trickle now.
The campaign in Kerala gained momentum after a study by university students and scientists on random samples brought from city markets found to have contained formalin and ammonia. Formalin, derived from formaldehyde which is carcinogenic, is used to preserve dead bodies in mortuaries. These chemicals were used lavishly to enhance the shelf life of the catch.
Insatiable greed for profits and erosion in business ethics has made our businessmen and traders deceitful and fraudulent, like never before. Lax laws in the country (where culprits escape with a six-month imprisonment and a fine of Rs 1,000) and the corruption at various levels of authority have made them thrive at the cost of the entire generation’s health. This treachery surely amounts to nothing less than treason.
Food departments in India, on the flip side, continue to be drowsy dodos. Or are they paid to behave that way?
While the blame is on individual traders and small enterprises, even big players do similar tricks to stay 'alive' in India’s highly competitive food industry, estimated to be around $65 billion. The government is making all efforts to encourage investments. But the food adulteration is proving to be a big menace.
After the World Health Organization's 'REPLACE' initiative aimed to eliminate industrially-produced trans fats from the global food supply by 2023, India is planning to tighten its rules. The regulatory authority the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) recently announced that it aims to reduce the maximum level of trans fat allowed in vegetable oils, vegetable fat and hydrogenated vegetable oil from its current level of 5% to 2% by 2022, on a phased basis.
Since food adulteration is a concurrent subject, some states such as Odisha, West Bengal and Uttar Pradesh have already enhanced the punishment to life. Simultaneously, the Law Commission of India recently proposed a similar life imprisonment and a higher fine of Rs 10 lakh and prepared a detailed report on amending the Indian Penal Code (IPC). We need to act quickly; the absence of such rules has already taken a toll on our collective health.
We surely deserve to eat something better.
Out of 550 milk samples, 210 fail the tests
LUDHIANA: To check the adulteration of milk and milk products in the district, the dairy development board is organising several camps, under the Mission Tandrust Punjab, in Ludhiana. The dairy development board organised 18 different camps in different parts of Ludhiana district between June 5 and June 14, 2018, where 550 milk samples were checked out of which 210 failed.
While providing information, deputy director at dairy development board Dilbagh Singh Hans said, “The department organised eight village-level and two block-level awareness camps for public and during these camps, a total of 550 samples were collected, out of which 340 samples passed while 210 samples failed. 10 to 30% water was also found in milk.
Hans also said a block-level camp was organised at Purain village in which more than 120 people were educated about dairy farming. Similarly, several free milk testing camps were organised in different wards and villages of Ludhiana.
Deputy director appealed to the public that if they have any information about adulteration of milk or its products, they should immediately bring it to the notice of the department. He added that the department also visits various schools, where students are educated about the ways to check adulteration of milk. The experts from Guru Angad Dev Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, Ludhiana, as well as from the dairy development department educate the participants about milk and milk products in detail. These experts educate the public about Food Safety Act, dairy farming as well as about various schemes of Punjab government.
FDA receives 18 test kits from Kochi
Margao: Over the last three days, the directorate of food and drugs administration (FDA) has tested a total of 20 fish samples with none being positive.
FDA director Jyoti Sardesai told TOI that “the FDA has begun checking fish samples at three fish markets – Panaji, Mapusa and Bicholim. We tested four samples from the Panaji fish market, seven from the Mapusa fish market and nine from the Bicholim fish market. All the samples have passed.” No checks were, however, conducted at Margao wholesale market.
“The FDA has received 18 testing kits from Kochi, Kerala, but we have asked for more kits. These kits will be made available commercially in one week,” said the FDA director.
Sardesai further clarified about the early morning raid conducted by a FDA team at the South Goa Planning and Development Authority (SGPDA) wholesale fish market on July 12 wherein the spot test detected traces of formalin in the fish. But after tests were conducted in the FDA laboratory, the FDA declared it as negative and to be ‘within permissible limits.’
To a query, the director said that nobody is supposed to declare results of the spot test which are just indicative tests and further tests are required to be conducted in the FDA laboratory. So one cannot jump to conclusions as it was found to be in the safe range below 0.5 parts per million (ppm). The government will take action against the official (who prematurely declared the results).”
Sardesai said, “Everything has been clarified and made public in the press release issued. Everyone is making a mistake as formalin cannot be added to any food item as per the Food and Safety Standards rules. But, formaldehyde is a natural organic compound present in fish. The amount of formaldehyde varies upto 4 ppm which is considered as safe (permissible limit).”
Jul 15, 2018
350kg banned tobacco products seized from warehouse in city
Coimbatore: The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) officials on Saturday seized about 350kg banned tobacco products worth about Rs 2lakh form a warehouse in the city.
Shortly after seizing about 250kg banned tobacco products from a warehouse on Thomas Street on Friday, the officials had found a small warehouse in the residential area, FSSAI designated officer B Vijayalalithambigai said. “As its owner did not turn up till night, we sealed the warehouse with the help of police. We opened it on Saturday morning in presence of the owner and found about 350kg banned tobacco products,” she said.
“We have sent the sample to laboratories in Madurai. We will file a case after receiving reports from the laboratory.”
In a series of raids since January, the FSSAI officials have seized over five tons of banned tobacco products worth several crores of rupees
Only formalin-free fish can be sold, says FSC
Food Safety Commissioner (FSC), Himato Zhimomi, Saturday said the department had only banned those fish containing toxic chemical (formalin) and that any fish without formalin was allowed to be sold in the market.
The food safety commissioner told Nagaland Post that the ban on imported fish would be lifted any time once the fish was found without formalin.
Zhimomi said that no one has arrested so far in connection with sale of formalin-laced fish, but added that he was in contact with counterparts in Andhra Pradesh and Assam from where the fish is imported.
He informed that Andhra Pradesh government was in the process of forming a committee to probe the case. The commissioner, however, said that even if formalin-free certification is issued in Andhra Pradesh, the same would do tested in Nagaland since foul play could happen during transportation and storage.
When asked if there was any provision to compensate the fish traders since most of them claim to be innocent and made huge loss, commissioner said there was no question of compensating them as they were equally wrong and liable to be punished with fine and imprisonment. However, since this was the first case in the state, he said the government was lenient this time. He said the Centre was very serious about food adulteration, adding that under the Food Safety Act, food adulterators were liable to life imprisonment.
The commissioner also warned local fish sellers that they were liable to be punished under the Act if found selling formalin-laced fish. He suggested that fish sellers should upgrade their system with cold storage and maintain proper hygiene.
Zhimomi said that the department was doing its job for the safety of everybody and to ensure that no consumer was cheated with harmful chemical. In this regard, the commissioner has sought the cooperation of the public and traders to effectively check the harmful practices.
Formalin in fish detected in Wka
Food safety team conducted random sampling test of formalin content in fishes from various fish kiosk in and around Wokha district on July 13, 2018 and out of the six samples collected, one tested positive for presence of formalin.
Five-member food safety team led by State Public Health Laboratory (SPHL) food analyst, Khrukutolu Veswuh, comprised of food security officer Wokha, Pelerienuo Kehie, deputy chief medical officer Wokha, Dr.Zuben Kikon, media officer (CMO) office Wokha and EAC HQ, Tumpen P Tsanglao.
According to an official bulletin, earlier samples taken from the same area also tested positive as per report from received from the SPHL. It stated that the contaminated fishes were seized for destruction.
On the same day, the team also visited Doyang to collect samples from the fish depots.
At Doyang, six species of fishes were tested from the local fish storage where freezers containing ice were also tested but found to be negative.
The responsible authority is currently investigating the source of formalin contamination in the district, it stated.
Further, the authority has directed fish vendors to obtain clearance certificates from the FSO Wokha if they wished to sell fish.
Around 14kg contaminated fishes tested positive were destroyed the same day in presence of officials.
All fish, imported or local, treated with formalin, has been banned in Wokha district as per the standing prohibitory order issued by Food Safety commissioner.
Further, the department has informed that random spot testing would be carried out in the district and defaulters would be penalized and legal course of action would be taken as per the provision under Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006.
Fish samples in Wokha test positive for formalin
Officials destroying formalin contaminated fish in Wokha on July 13.
Investigation for source of formalin contamination in the district underway
Wokha, July 14 (MExN): A random sampling test of formalin content in fishes in and around Wokha district was conducted on July 13 by representatives of Food Safety Nagaland let by Khrukutolu Veswuh, Food Analyst State Public Health Laboratory from Kohima comprising of five members team, Food security Officer Wokha, Pelerienuo Kehie, Dy.Chief Medical Officer Wokha, Dr. Zuben Kikon, Media officer (CMO) office Wokha and EAC HQ, Tumpen P Tsanglao.
DIPR reported in a news item that out of the six samples, one tested positive for presence of formalin which was collected from in and around Wokha district from various fish kiosks. Earlier samples taken from the same area tested positive as per report from received from the State Public Health Laboratory. The contaminated fishes were seized for destruction.
The team also visited Doyang the same day to collect samples from the fish depots. At Doyang six species of fishes were tested from the local fish storage where freezers containing ice were also tested but found to be negative. Investigation for source of formalin contamination in the district is underway by the concerned authority.
Further, the concerned authority informed that if fish vendors want to sell fishes they are directed to obtain clearance certificates from the FSO Wokha.
Around 14 KGs of contaminated fishes tested positive were destroyed the same day in presence of officials present District Administration, representatives of Food Safety Nagaland, Dy.Chief Medical Officer Wokha, Media officer (CMO) office Wokha.
All fish imported or local, which is treated with formalin is banned in Wokha district as per the standing prohibitory order issue by Food Safety commissioner cum Commissioner &Secretary Nagaland, I.Himato Zhimomi IFS. Further the concerned department informed that random spot testing will be carried out in the district and defaulters will be penalized and legal course of action will be taken as per the provision under Food Safety and standards Act, 2006.
Jul 14, 2018
Tamil Nadu temples to soon get food safety tag for 'prasadam'
Major government run temples will now get certification from the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India.
The Murugan temple's panchamirtham prasadam now features FSSAI licence number, price, weight and best before date.
Chennai: As many as 47 major temples in Tamil Nadu run by the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Department will get Food Safety and Standards Authority of India certification for their 'prasadam,' an official said on Friday.
Prasadam, a material substance of food, is a religious offering and is normally consumed by devotees after offering prayers.
The exercise, aimed at ensuring quality and bringing in standardisation, began with the prasadam of the famous Sri Palani Murugan temple's (Dhandayuthapaniswamy temple) 'Panchamirtham' (a mix of banana, ghee, honey, sugar and dates).
"Palani Murugan temple was our pilot project. We have initiated the process of getting FSSAI certification in other 46 temples as well," the official said.
The Murugan temple's panchamirtham prasadam now features FSSAI licence number, price, weight and best before date.
On the reason for the initiative, the official said, "Quality assurance is our priority... incidents of people taking ill after consuming prasadam in some private temples drew our attention and we decided to go in for licensing."
In April this year, two women died and over 30 people took ill after consuming prasadam provided by a privately administered temple at Mettupalayam near Coimbatore.
Madurai Meenakshi Amman temple, Rameswaram Sri Ramanathaswamy temple, Srirangam Ranganathaswamy temple and Tiruvannamalai Arunachaleswara temple are among the major shrines of Tamil Nadu.
Tests confirm no formalin in Chennai fish: Fisheries minister
Fisheries minister D Jayakumar on Friday refuted reports that fish sold in Chennai contain the cancer-causing chemical formalin.
The minister told reporters that tests by Tamil Nadu Fisheries University and the food safety department had ruled out the presence of formalin — illegally used as a preservative — in fish samples collected at random from landing centres, fish markets and harbours in Chennai and surrounding areas.
Jayakumar was attempting to counter a public scare over accounts of fish laced with the chemical showing up in markets in Chennai and elsewhere in the state.
“People can test samples in private institutes if they are not confident of the tests by officials,” he said, adding that the government was taking measures to ensure that only chemical-free fish is available for sale in the state.
“Middlemen transporting fish from neighbouring states may have engaged in such practices,” the minister said in response to a question on traces of formalin in samples from Chintadripet. State food safety officials have been conducting tests of fish samples over the past fortnight on an alert from Kerala on seizure of a consignment of formalin-laced fish.
Jayakumar said the use of illegal preservatives like formalin would attract stern action. Noting that the formalin scare had caused fish sales to plunge, directly affecting fishermen, he appealed to people not to allow rumours to sway them. “Why would fishermen want to risk their livelihood by adopting such practices?” he said.
“Fishermen have mechanized boats with cold storage facilities to keep fish fresh for 10 to 15 days and transporters use refrigerated trucks,” he said. “There is no need to use formalin because the demand for fish is high.”
Mortuaries use formalin, derived from formaldehyde, to preserve bodies. Fish wholesalers sometimes illegally use it as a preservative, especially while transporting it to other states.
Formalin is commonly used to preserve bodies and prevent its decay in. Fish traders sometimes illegally use it as a preservative.
Officials of the food safety and fisheries departments had earlier in the week conducted checks in fish markets in Kasimedu, Chintadripet and Saidapet. None of 24 samples they tested with rapid-detection kits were chemically contaminated.
Sale of salani fish banned in Assam
Ban follows after fish samples found with formalin
GUWAHATI, July 10: Dispur on Tuesday banned procurement of frozen fish (commonly known as salani fish) from outside Assam and any sale of the same in markets for the next ten days.
The ban has been imposed after the Public Health Laboratory, Assam confirmed use of formalin in some samples of such fish collected by officials of the Commissionerate of Food Safety from Pamohi wholesale market in the city on June 29.
A solution of 35 to 40 per cent of water in formaldehyde or methanal is called formalin. Formalin is a strong disinfectant and tissue hardener and it is used for preserving biological and anatomical specimens. It is also used as an antiseptic in sterilizing surgical instruments. Use of such chemicals to keep fish fresh for a longer period causes serious health hazards for fish-eating population.
“After 10 days, we will again conduct drives, and if formalin is still found, we will punish them under the provisions of the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006. The original sellers will be contacted through the cash memos. Also, we will request the local sellers not to increase fish prices during this period,” said an official of the Food Safety Department.
The government is, however, reluctant to stop procurement of fish for a long time as a large number of people might be affected by such a step. The official, however, said if any fish seller is found using formalin for preservation of fish in future will be arrested and sent to jail for a minimum period of two years and maximum of seven years. The accused will also have to pay fine to the tune of Rs 10 lakh.
No U-turn on fish results: FDA
The Directorate of Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) in Goa on Friday said that there was no U-turn by the FDA with regards to tests conducted on fish in a raid on Thursday.
A statement from the FDA here said, they had received communication from Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) to furnish details of sampling of fish and detections of contaminants of fish with Formalin if Positive; by lab reports.
''Also keeping in mind the reports of banning of import of fish from Chennai by the State of Assam due to Formalin contamination, and to ensure that the fish received by our State from Chennai is free from contamination the FDA officials had visited wholesale fish market at Margao and fish Market at Panaji on July 12, 2018, to draw the fish samples,'' it said.
Spot tests carried out on the samples indicated presence of Aldehydes, which is a family of organic compounds which includes formaldehyde. Formaldehyde in its liquid form is known as formalin. Among all the aldehydes, formalin (formaldehyde) is carcinogenic, if consumed in excess.
To rule out the presence of added Formaldehyde in the fish samples same were subjected to detailed testing at FDA laboratory at Bambolim and the results were found to be within permissible limit.
Spot test carried out for detection of Aldehyde is only an indicative test and unless the confirmatory tests are carried out in the Laboratory to ascertain the presence of formalin quality, fish cannot be declared as positive for Formalin content.
It is to be noted that Marine fish naturally contains certain amount of Formalin. As per the report published by Society of Fisheries Technologists (India) the concentration of Formaldehyde in Marine fish is found to be varying between 2.38 to 2.95 mg/kg; fish/shellfish 0.33 to 16 mg/kg.etc.
The Scientific papers published in the International Journal of Fisheries and aquatic studies shows that freshly caught fishes contains presence of naturally occurring formaldehyde in the range of 1.45 mg/Kg to 2.6 mg/Kg. However, the concentration may vary depending upon the commodity, the geographical condition, the marine waters.
The Laboratory analysis performed on the fish samples drawn from Margao wholesale market and Panjim market showed the results on par with the naturally occurring concentration for the different fishes tested ruling out the possibility of added amount of formalin.
In the afternoon on July 12, 2018, two more samples of Verli (silver fish) and Mackerels were drawn by the FDA officials from Old Goa and these samples also showed positive for Aldehydes by the spot test however, upon laboratory analysis no added formalin was detected.
FDA Goa on Friday received the "CIFTest" Formaldehyde detection kit for fresh fish developed by ICAR Central Institute of Fisheries Technology, Mastsyapuri, Cochin, and the above two samples were also tested by the kit and the same did not show presence of formalin.
The FDA would continue its drive to test the samples of fish for presence of formalin contamination to assure the public of Goa that the fish available in Goa was safe for public consumption.
The public were requested not to panic regarding the quality of fish available in the state, the statement added.
Jul 13, 2018
Temple ‘prasadam’ to be offered first to FSSAI, then God
Divine food: Devotees get ‘prasadam’ at the entrance to the Varadharaja Perumal temple in Kancheepuram. |
Food Safety body to standardise temple prasadams and fix ‘best before’ dates in Tamil Nadu
When it comes to temple prasadams, faith in God has traditionally been a good enough guarantor of food safety. But soon, the sacred offerings made to the deities, such as laddus, murukku, vadai, and adhirasam, will get third party validation of their safety and quality in the form of certification by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI). The 47 major temples in Tamil Nadu plan to sell prasadams in food grade containers that will have ‘best before’ dates.
Already, the Sri Dandayudhapani Temple in Palani has gone in for licensing of its Panchamirtham. This famous prasadam now comes packed in containers, along with labelling that enumerates the ingredients, weight, price, FSSAI licence number, and other details stipulated by the Food Safety Department (FSD), said an official from the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments (HR and CE) Department.
Regular inspections
The HR and CE Department has directed temples that sell prasadams over the counter to go in for licensing from the FSD, which will test samples to provide a ‘best before’ date. There would also be regular inspections from the FSD to ensure quality and quantity in the prasadams being sold.
Among the major temples in the State, the Palani temple was the first to go in for FSSAI certification. Prasadams in temples are usually made by contractors who get the tender for a year, from July to June. “Contractors have been asked to ensure quality. We are planning to involve experts in the making of sweets and savouries to bring in standardisation. Already, the Food Safety Department has conducted training programmes for the contractors and also for the madapalli staff of temples,” an official said. We have also asked them to ensure that items cooked using rice be sold as soon as possible, he added.
The FSD also ensures the quality of food at major temple festivals.
Food safety appellate body formed
G.O. issued and rules notified; chairperson identified, says senior official
Almost 12 years after the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, was enacted by Parliament, the Tamil Nadu government has established the Food Safety Appellate Tribunal to hear appeals against the ruling of the adjudicating officer. The government also notified rules governing the tribunal recently.
“The G.O. for setting up the tribunal has been issued and a person has been identified to be its chairperson; steps are on to set up an office for the tribunal,” a senior officer connected with the development said.
As per Section 70 of the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, the Central and State governments are to establish one or more food safety appellate tribunals to hear appeals from the decisions of the adjudicating officer. The one-member panel is to be held by a district judge (the adjudicating officer is in the rank of an additional district magistrate).
Test Your Food Sample
A food-testing facility on wheels has been on the rounds of Chandigarh for almost two years now. The UT food safety department developed this van in 2016 to check adulteration and, after Food Safety and Standards Authority (FSSAI) appreciated it, the idea caught on in the entire country.
This mobile laboratory is a one-stop solution for the city residents who need to know the purity of their daily food. Its crew of two technicians and a helper travels to five places in Chandigarh. It stands at the Sector-22 civil hospital on Mondays, Sector-8 civil dispensary on Tuesdays, Sector-40 civil dispensary on Wednesdays, the Sector-45 civil hospital on Thursdays, and the Manimajra civil hospital on Friday.
The van also visits housing societies as and when the resident welfare associations require. It remains at each venue from 11am to 5pm, before returning to the food safety department office in Sector 16.
Items on the hit list
Laboratory technician Kavaljit Singh said: “The most-tested product? It’s the milk samples that people bring to us. It’s a rare occasion when they bring packed milk, as most of the times, it is the loose product they doubt. Also, the chances of getting water-diluted milk are higher when one receives it from open canisters. The next most tested item is pulses, as these can be adulterated easily with chalk powder and are polished with chemicals for artificial lustre.
Quick process
Consumers have to first register their details on the spot. The team requires their name, contact details, including address, and the food item that is to be tested. In case of milk, people should specify whether it is of a buffalo or a cow, and whether it is double-toned, skimmed, toned, full-cream, or mixed.”
The most-used machine aboard the van is the milk tester. Of its two parts, the first reads the ratio of the sub-ingredients and confirms whether these are present in amounts specified by the FSSAI. The second part confirms adulteration. Pulses are mixed with certain chemicals to ascertain the presence of adulterants. The entire process, be it for the testing of milk, pulses, or any other food product, does not exceed 20 minutes. The milk sample is first brought to room temperature before being tested, which takes not more than two minutes.
Results are out
The results are delivered on the spot. The printed reports state the level of adulteration of the tested sample, including the adulterants it was tested for. In case of a failed report, the consumer can approach the consumer court with the printed results as a proof against the seller. The laboratory’s job is limited to producing the report. The issue is to be taken up by the consumers themselves. Along with the results, the consumers are also handed a receipt for their payment.
Food samples that require intensive testing are forwarded to the designated officer and food safety licensing authority. A record of the daily reports goes to the licensing authority, and a nodal officer inspects it.
Cost-effective testing
In order to get milk samples tested, a consumer will have to shell out nothing more than Rs 20. Jasvir Kaur, another lab technician, said, “When it comes to pulses, the cost for testing against each possible adulterant is Rs 20.”
Ample storage
At first glance, it’s difficult to judge from the size of the van the kind of room it has inside. It’s tough also to guess its infrastructure and storage capacity for equipment and samples (some samples brought for testing need cold storage). Even after adjusting several drawers, a refrigerator, pedestal fans and a long countertop holding food sample testing machines, a cylinder, and fire extinguisher, the van is still left with ample space for three-member crew to move around.
With milk being the most tested product, the consumers coming to the mobile laboratory number from eight to 10 daily. The consumers coming up with pulses don’t surpass 13 to 14 cases a month. It is closely followed by the demand for testing several other products in the laboratory. Hey Chandigarh, with a mobile testing laboratory in your neighborhood, why take the chances of being fooled by the shopkeepers?
Box:
Schedule of mobile lab
Monday |Civil Hospital, Sector 22
Tuesday | Civil Dispensary, Sector 8
Wednesday | Civil Dispensary, Sector 40
Thursday | Civil Hospital, Sector 45
Friday | Civil Hospital, Manimajra
Box:
Products tested
Items |Tested for
Milk | Fat, urea, starch, glucose, neutraliser
Desi Ghee | Margarine
Cheese |Starch
Mustard oil |Argan oil, castor oil
Pulses |Metanil yellow colour, lead chromate, chalk powder
Jaggery | Metanil yellow colour, washing soda
Lucknow eateries to be graded on quality and hygiene
Under the new system, the Food Safety and Drug Administration (FSDA) will grade Lucknow’s food joints as A+, A, B and so on, based on various inspections.
According to district food officer Suresh Kumar, the system is for all small eateries, restaurants, hotels, resorts and food courts for five categories.
These are: design and facilities, control and operation, maintenance and sanitation, personal hygiene, and lastly, training and keeping records.
Besides, an annual medical examination or fitness certificate is mandatory for the food joint owner and employees.
All employees will also be checked for prescribed vaccination under the personal hygiene category.
The food joint must also have a mechanism to receive customer complaints and make a redressal system. This record will be inspected weekly by FSDA. If any quality-related complaint is found, an investigation will follow and the joint owner could face legal action or the place could be closed down.
The five categories have 47 sub-categories, the maximum marks for which total to 114. There will also be negative marking on the subcategories.
If negative marking exceeds 70 points, the food joint will face legal action.
Food chain owners, executives attend CII food safety training
Kolkata: About 50 owners and executives from hotel and restaurant groups, clubs and canteens, food joints & eateries attended a Food Safety Training and Certificate (FOSTAC) programme organised by CII on Thursday.
The programme, which was inaugurated by Godhuli Mukherjee, the Food Commissioner of Bengal, is a part of its Surakshit Khadya Abhiyan (Safe Food Campaign), included specialized training sessions on how and why one can maintain quality and hygiene – right from the stage of procuring raw materials, cooking, cleaning and storing to serving and transporting food.
"We explained to the participants why they should religiously follow the guidelines formed by Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) ,"said A K Sen, CII FACE Faculty & National Level Resource Person (FoSTaC), Food Safety & Quality, FSSAI.
"All those engaged in the business of preparing, serving and supplying food items need to be quality conscious and responsible," he said.
Sen lauded the efforts of the state government for playing a proactive role in the wake of allegations of carcass meat being sold and served in and around the city. "The Government is taking measures, carrying out regular inspections and taking actions," he said, adding that the implementation of FSSAI standards should remain a priority.
Sagar Daryani, Co-Founder & CEO, Wow Momo Foods Pvt Ltd, and Chair, CII ER Food Safety Core Group, admitted that the "rotten meat scandal" gave a bad blow to the industry as a whole. "In my own company, business was 37 percent negative till May. June saw a revival. July is even better," Daryani said. "Many eateries in Kolkata have been forced to suspend operations, CII strongly advocates regular training in food safety in this backdrop," Daryani added.
The day-long programme ended with a test. "Upon qualifying the test, the participants will be certified as FOSTAC-Trained – a mandatory FSSAI regulation since 2017," said Sen.
Chemical use was in focus 4 yrs ago too
Panaji: The use of the cancer-causing chemical, formalin, to preserve fish in exports from Goa had surfaced in Kerala four years ago, after an advocate filed a public interest litigation (PIL) seeking compliance of food safety rules. A report submitted before the Kerala high court in January 2014 in connection with the PIL filed by join food safety commissioner K Anil Kumar, had stated that some samples of fish analysed to verify if formalin had been used as a preservative, had tested positive. Advocate A G Basil had filed the PIL alleging malpractices in the food industry and had prayed for a direction to ensure that the food sold adhered to provisions of the Food Safety Act and Rules.
Formalin had been found in the fish brought into Kerala from Goa, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh, and the governments of the coastal states had been informed, the court was told. But, the Goa food and drugs administration (FDA) had responded to the issue by stating that analysis of some samples had proven negative. “We had taken some samples, but found nothing in the fish samples,” an FDA official had said.
Subsequently, a couple of years ago, the FDA had done more analyses but did not find formalin in the samples, sources said.
Jul 12, 2018
Soon, formal test kits to hit markets in Andhra Pradesh
Soon, formal test kits to hit markets Soon, formal test kits to hit markets Soon, formal test kits to hit markets Soon, formal test kits to hit
VISAKHAPATNAM: Test kits, developed by the Central Institute of Fisheries Technology (CIFT), for detection of formalin and ammonia contamination in fish, will be commercially produced soon. Finding that there is increasing use of formalin in the freshwater fish sent from Andhra Pradesh to northeastern states of India, a joint team of Food Safety department, Animal Husbandry department and the Fisheries department has been inspecting freshwater fishing areas to certify the stock using the kit.
The technology has been licensed to the Mumbai-based HiMedia Laboratories Private Limited and the formal exchange of the MoU was held at a ICAR-CIFT, Kochi, recently. The development of the detection kit was in response to the needs of the ordinary fish consumers to detect contaminants and allay their apprehensions.
Since it takes three-four days for fish exports to reach destination and the fish don’t get contaminated in transit, traders use formalin for a longer shelf-life. As the unsuspecting consumers buy the fish, they are affected by digestive and cancer problems. “With this formalin test kit, consumers or even the public can check the formalin content. The strip when rubbed on fish changes colour it is detected to contain formalin. The kit with around 25 strips is `3 at our level but the price may change when it is commercially produced.
The production will start in 15 days,” said Raghu Prakash, the scientist incharge of the CIFT.
Finding that formalin fish are exported to North India, the state government has made it a point to check the formalin content in fishes and stamp them before exporting. With majority of the freshwater fish in AP is exported from West Godavari and Krishna districts, two teams haver been constituted in the two districts with fisheries officials, food inspector and veterinary assistant surgeon in each team. “The teams will go to the packing areas and test the fishes.
More than 4 per cent PPM (parts per million) will change the colour, indicating the presence of formalin,” said P Koteswara Rao, the incharge joint director of Fisheries. The checks have started in the two districts. The main aim is to see that freshwater fish exported from the AP should not have more than the permitted formalin.
“Daily inspection report will be submitted and the box will be stamped for certification before being exported. The traders who use formalin in fish for exports will be booked under the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI),” Koteswara Rao told TNIE.
Further, there are also reports on adulteration of seafood in the state. With around 500 landing centres, including major and minor ones, and four fishing harbours in the state, the department plans to get samples from the landing centres and check the fish for quality standards.
Rotten food items found at 2 clubs
Health officials at a food establishment in Amritsar on Wednesday.
Amritsar, July 11
A team of health officials conducted a surprise check at three private clubs in the city on Wednesday. Two of the clubs were found using rotten eatables following which a huge quantity of items, including rotten chicken, were destroyed.
District Health Officer Dr Lakhbir Singh Bhagowalia said substandard food items were found at Lumsden Club and Heritage Club. Besides, the managements could not produce the mandatory licence under the Food Safety and Standards Act. The clubs have been operating without a licence which is against the FSSA norms. The department has issued a notice to them to get the licence within seven days and resolve all discrepancies within the stipulated time. “We will be conducting a follow up inspection after seven days and if no improvement is found, action as per law will be taken,” he said.
He added the condition at Amritsar Club was comparatively better and they also produced a valid FSSA licence.
Health officials said condition of kitchens was unhygienic and below normal standards. The clubs could not produce medical certificates of cooks and other staff. As per the law, the food businesses are required to get their staff medically examined for communicable diseases and ensure that all workers are fit and healthy.
Dr Baghowalia said none of the workers at any club wore head covers and gloves. The department has also asked the clubs to display and follow 12 golden rules for hygiene and cleanliness as listed by Food Safety and Standards Authority of India.
Deputy Commissioner (DC) Kamaldeep Singh Sangha has also called a meeting of hoteliers and restaurants, including private clubs, for Friday to ask them to follow all food safety instructions under the ongoing ‘Tandrust Punjab’ mission.
Ban on sale of fresh fish products
Hailakandi, July 11: District Magistrate, Hailakandi, Adil Khan has directed the Food Safety Officer Surat Zamman Choudhury to initiate legal action against fish vendors selling fresh fish products including crustaceans treated with formalin considered to be highly toxic and health hazard.
In an order issued to this effect here today, District Magistrate Khan asked the Food Safety Officer to inspect the markets and other places to verify the sale of fresh fish products, including crustaceans laced with formalin and to take firm legal action against the fish vendors under the provisions of Food Safety Standards (Food Products Standards and Food Addictives) Regulations 2011.
Khan asked the Food Safety Officer to take along with him the District Fisheries Development Officer and seek the help of the Officer-in-Charge of concerned Police Station to enforce the Food Safety and Standards Act 2006 against storage, distribution and sale of fresh fish, including crustaceans brought from outside the State. The District Magistrate asked the Circle Officers to provide the officials necessary logistics and other support in enforcing the regulations. The order comes into force with immediate effect.
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