Telangana food safety drive: 38 sweet samples lifted, 21 units face notices

Hyderabad, Oct 25 (TNT): Telangana food safety officials inspected 53 sweet manufacturing and retail establishments across the state and lifted 38 samples on suspicion of adulteration during a special drive conducted on October 23, the Telangana Standards Authority for Food and Essential Drugs (TG SAFE) said on Sunday.

Improvement notices will be issued to 20 establishments to rectify lapses identified during inspections, while a show-cause notice will be issued to one establishment, with further action proposed for imposing penalties, TG SAFE said in a release here.

The inspections revealed several hygiene and food safety violations, including damaged flooring, food waste littering, unclean washing areas, clogged drains and dirty walls.

Officials also found that some establishments lacked pest control and food-handler health records.

Food handlers were found working without hairnets and gloves, while greasy exhaust systems and chimneys and improper storage of food articles were also noticed.

Food items were found stored directly on the floor, with food and non-food articles kept together in some establishments.

TG SAFE said the establishments would be reinspected to verify compliance with food safety norms and further action would be taken based on the findings.

The special drive covered sweet shops, bakeries and related establishments in several districts, including Mancherial, Jangaon, Siddipet, Khammam, Narayanpet, Jogulamba Gadwal, Wanaparthy, Nalgonda, Suryapet, Peddapalli, Kamareddy, Nirmal, Hyderabad, Hanumakonda, Medak, Mulugu, Jagtial, Warangal, Mahabubnagar and Bhadradri Kothagudem.

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