The Punjab Food Authority (PFA) has sealed a godown for storing expired oil and ghee of popular brands while carrying out an operation under the supervision of its Director General Irfan Memon.
Acting on a tip-off, Director General along with food safety team raided on a godown near to Lahore and caught a huge cache of expired food including 45,000kg expired ghee & oil; 2,700kg corn oil and 192kg Bisco Puff. He said that all confiscated material sent to dumping site for discarding as per ecofriendly policy. He said entire expired stock of the company was removed from the market that was supplied in local shops after changing expiry dates.
The director general said that PFA has started an investigation against godown’s owner and also asked an explanation from the company. The use of expired oil and ghee in the preparation of food dishes causes of health problems. He said that it is compulsory for food business operators to keep a record of expired and discarded material according to the Punjab Food Authority’s laws. The authority will continue its indiscriminate action against counterfeiters and adulterators till complete elimination from Punjab. In Punjab, the food business is allowed only according to the rules, he added.
On the other hand, PFA has sealed 17 eateries besides serving improvement notices to more than 300 food points across Punjab. According to details, a team of PFA shut down Modern Lazeza in Rawalpindi over fake labelling of different brands. Meanwhile, PFA Chakwal team sealed Ali Catering Service due to the presence of rats in the production area and not taking measures to control insects.
In South Punjab, the teams have sealed five Karyana stores for using non-food graded drums to store food, selling substandard products, an abundance of pests and poor cleanliness arrangements. Food safety teams also shut down three spices units due to selling adulterated spices, the presence of expired food, preserved food at foot level and for failing to produce food license. In Raheem Yar Khan, dairy safety team closed down a milk shop for selling untraceable cream and chemically contaminated milk.
The provincial food regulatory body has raided Sheikh Ishaq Grinding unit in Gujranwala and sealed it over proved contamination in red chilli powder and for failing to meet hygienic working environment. Honey Foods was sealed for not following labelling rules and poor storage.
Further, Shahbaz Traders was sealed by PFA after recovering bags of expired stearic acid and over poor cleanliness arrangements. In Faisalabad, PFA has raided Shabbir Dairy Farm and sealed it after failing its samples in the laboratory test and discarded 80kg desi ghee.
The authority also sealed Roll and Bite food point due to using rusty cutting machines, not having an agreement with biodiesel company and failing to produce medical certificates. PFA Ghulam Muhammad Abad team shut down Moods Pizza in the area of Bahu Chowk for using dirty oil to fry food.