On the directions of Punjab Food Authority (PFA) Director General Irfan Memon, the provincial food regulatory body has launched an inspection campaign against three, four and five star hotels on Sunday across Punjab.
During the operation, PFA’s enforcement teams have visited 32 hotels, sealed one besides serving improvement notices to 25 hotels. Apart from that, five food business operators were penalized with hefty fines over violations. According to data, food safety teams have visited three hotels each in Faisalabad and Sialkot, 11 in Lahore and five each in Gujranwala, Rawalpindi and South Punjab.
DG Irfan Memon said that Royalson Hotel’s kitchen was sealed over usage of loose adulterated spices in the preparation of food dishes and expired beverages also. He further said that fines were imposed on five hotels due to using rotten vegetables, fungus-infested food items and poor arrangements of cleanliness. Warning notices were also served over the violation of hygiene standards to 25 hotels. He added that PFA watchdog teams have discarded a huge quantity of food, including expired beverages, bread and hazardous food items.
Moreover, he said that positive change has been noticed after establishing training schools and inspection daily. Serious actions are being taken against the violators on merit and without any discrimination, he added.