The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has ordered all state regulators to sensitise all hotels, restaurants, and pubs along with the restaurant associations to ensure that adulterated items such as paneer and khoya are not used in food preparations, according to sources in the know.
Meanwhile, the regional offices of the regulator are in the process of collecting branded and unbranded egg samples to check for the presence of nitrofurans. As many as 10 regional laboratories have been identified to carry out the tests.
The move comes after social media channels claimed to have detected traces of AOZ (Amino-Oxazolidinone), which is linked to nitrofuran antibiotics that are banned in India, in the eggs sold by a renowned brand.
On drives against adulteration, FSSAI officials said that multiple instances of adulteration and misbranding of dairy products have been reported across the country in recent times.
"Such products are often manufactured by illegal and unlicensed entities, posing a serious risk to consumers," the above mentioned source said, adding that any misrepresentation of adulterated or analogue products as genuine dairy items constitutes a clear violation of the Food Safety and Standards Act and associated regulations.
To clamp down, food safety officers have also been directed to draw enforcement samples of milk, paneer and khoya as per prescribed procedures and verify the licensing and registration status of businesses.
FSSAI has also asked states and UTs to promptly record all data on the Food Safety Compliance System to enable effective consolidation and analysis at the headquarters level.
-- Akshara Srivastava, Business Standard
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