16 September,2023 07:58 AM IST | Mumbai | A Correspondent
FDA officials test some of the samples of the milk
The Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) campaign against restaurants in violation of food safety norms was paused on Thursday and Friday, as the regulator conducted inspections on over 200 vehicles transporting 7,26,043 litres of milk to Mumbai. A total of 345 samples were tested, revealing that three of them were of sub-standard quality, while one was not milk. At least 23 litres of the total milk inspected were destroyed, while 1,900 litres were sent back to their origin.
This move comes before upcoming festivities, during which the demand for milk rises, as does the threat of adulteration. FDA officials were stationed at five toll booths through which vehicles entered Mumbai city, from Thursday night to early Friday morning: Dahisar, Mankhurd, Airoli, Mulund Check naka (E), and Mulund Check naka LBS. "We conduct such drives once or twice a year. There will be final detailed reports regarding the findings," said Shailesh Adhao, joint commissioner (food), FDA.
The FDA recently started raids on restaurants that fail to maintain food safety guidelines. The latest restaurant to shut down due to unsanitary conditions with pests in the kitchen, was the popular Bademiya. The restaurant is likely to reopen only after it submits compliance reports to the FDA.
Civic body also acts: The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation's (BMC) Health Department has also taken up its routine inspection of sweet shops in the city in light of increased demand during festivities. As part of the inspections, medical health officers from each ward will visit sweet shops to check if they are adhering to food safety guidelines. Moreover, storage conditions and the quality of mawa [solidified milk[ will be thoroughly checked, to prevent cases of poisoning.
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"It is our appeal to the citizens not to consume sweets that change colour or have a foul odour. Furthermore, such instances should be reported to the ward-level medical officer of health," BMC's health advisory stated.
7,26,043
Litres of milk being carried by vehicles that were checked
