The Jammu and Kashmir Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) has prohibited the sale, storage, distribution and display of 10 identified brands and batches of ghee across the Union Territory after laboratory tests found them to be sub-standard, unsafe or misbranded.
The action was taken under the provisions of the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, following examination of samples by the Notified Food Analyst at the National Food Laboratory in Ghaziabad and the Food Testing Laboratory in Kashmir.
The prohibited batches include ghee manufactured by Dairy Mohan, Apna Dairy Milk, Milk Bite, Nandni, Shahi Taj, Daawat Fresh, Nand Krishna, Vandu, Dairy Milk and Mohan Dairy.
The affected samples were collected from several parts of Jammu and Kashmir, including Anantnag, Shangus, Larnoo, Bijbehara, Samba, Kathua, Jammu, Tral and Pampore.
Laboratory analysis detected beta-sitosterol or foreign vegetable fat in the affected samples, along with positive Baudouin tests, abnormal fatty-acid profiles and deviations from prescribed physicochemical parameters.
The FDA has directed all food business operators, wholesalers, distributors and retailers to immediately stop the sale and distribution of the affected batches and ensure that the products are removed from circulation.
The concerned food business operators have also been instructed to submit details of their stock of the affected batches to the respective Designated Officer within 48 hours.
Enforcement authorities have been directed to maintain strict vigil and take necessary action to prevent further circulation of the prohibited products.
The FDA said that under applicable food safety standards, ghee must be derived exclusively from milk or milk products, and ghee containing any added matter not derived exclusively from milk fat is not permitted for sale.
The prohibition has come into effect immediately across Jammu and Kashmir in the interest of public health and consumer safety.
The FDA has urged consumers to remain vigilant and check the brand, batch number and date of packing while purchasing ghee. Consumers and retailers have also been advised to report the sale or availability of any prohibited batch to the concerned Food Safety authorities.
The administration said the action is a precautionary measure taken in the public interest and does not affect the statutory right of the concerned food business operators to seek re-analysis through an FSSAI-notified Referral Laboratory, in accordance with the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, and the rules framed thereunder.
(IANS Inputs)
