SRINAGAR: The Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) has issued 16 improvement notices to food business operators following 85 inspections of meat storage and processing units across Jammu and Kashmir, days after 1,600 kg of frozen buffalo meat was seized and destroyed at Budgam Railway Station.
The special inspection drive was conducted across various districts of the Union Territory to assess compliance with food safety standards, particularly hygiene and sanitation requirements in meat storage, processing and handling facilities.
In addition to the 16 improvement notices issued under Section 32 of the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, the FDA recommended 11 cases for initiation of proceedings under Section 56 of the Act over alleged unhygienic and insanitary practices.
Section 56 provides for a penalty of up to Rs 1 lakh for carrying out food processing or manufacturing under unhygienic or insanitary conditions.
The department also compounded four cases under the relevant provisions of the Act, imposing a cumulative fine of Rs 4,000.
The action comes against the backdrop of the seizure and subsequent destruction of 1,600 kg of frozen buffalo meat at Budgam Railway Station, which prompted a renewed focus on food safety compliance in the meat supply chain.
The FDA has directed operators dealing in frozen meat and meat products to maintain sanitary conditions, ensure prescribed temperature-controlled storage and transportation, preserve the cold chain throughout the supply chain and adhere to statutory labelling requirements.
Consumers have also been urged to report the sale or distribution of unsafe or adulterated food to the department through its official email address, [email protected].
