By Hirra Azmat
Srinagar, Mar 25: Substandard food items continue to flow into the Kashmir markets, posing a risk to people’s health.
An official of the Food Safety Department said there has been an increase in the sale and intake of misbranded food items in the Valley.
“Out of the samples collected from the market, 50 per cent were either substandard or unsafe for consumption,” the official said.
In the last 10 months, official figures of the Food Safety Department reveal that out of 1,351 samples of different food items collected by food inspectors from the Kashmir division, 330 were found to be unsafe, 106 substandard, and 204 were misbranded.
In Srinagar district, the Food Safety Department collected 445 samples for testing, of which 135 were found to be “misbranded and substandard”.
Figures reveal that a total of Rs 35 lakh was collected as fine from 739 people convicted for adulteration since April 2017.
Assistant Food Commissioner, Hilal Ahmad Mir, said, “We have received numerous complaints of food adulteration. We have managed to successfully prosecute 40 cases in the last 10 months.”
Mir said, “Food adulterators are now mainly targeting the fast-food business, putting the lives of consumers at a grave risk.”
He said eatables are deemed to be falling short of the permissible standards.
“The harmful colouring agents like Carmoisine, Tartrazine, and sunset yellow is widely used in fast-foods,” he said.
While vowing action against the shopkeepers selling adulterated food, Mir said, “There shall be no compromise on human health. We are prepared to deal with those who use substandard material in foods,” he added.
Echoing similar views, Deputy Controller Food Safety Department, Irfana Ahmad, said, “In the last several years, there has been a considerable rise improvement in food adulteration. We are trying our level best to keep a check on the adulterated foods in the market.”
Last month, the High Court stressed on the need for prohibitory measures for the strict implementation of Food Safety and Security Act, which essentially disallows food adulteration in the state.
