11 packaged snacks found ‘unfit’ for human consumption

• Company had applied for registration of 24 products and samples were sent to KU’s food testing lab
• Sindh Food Authority gives the firm three days to recall products from market

KARACHI: The Sindh Food Authority (SFA) has ordered a private company to immediately withdraw from market its 11 packaged snack products after a laboratory declared them “unfit” for people’s consumption, it emerged on Monday.

“— Slanty Vegetable, Snackers Hot Masala, Snackers Pizza, Twitch Classic, Potato Sticks, Cheese Ball Masala, Cheese Balls Cheese, Kai Korean Hot, Kai Spicy Mala, Kai Mala Wok and Kai Korean Kimchi have been found by examination not fit for human consumption,” said SFA Director General Muzamil Hussain Halepoto.

Mr Halepoto told Dawn that he had directed the management of the said company to withdraw the said products from the market within three days. He said after the deadline a legal action would be taken against the company.

He also asked other provincial food authorities to look into the issue in their respective jurisdiction for the safety of public health.

He said around two and a half months ago, the said company had submitted 24 products for registration. The SFA had submitted its samples to the Food Testing Laboratory established at the Department of Food Science and Technology, University of Karachi, which had declared 11 of them unfit for human consumption.

In a letter addressed to the private firm on Monday, the SFA chief stated that it had applied for product registration through an application on March 6 and provided samples of the products for the purposes of further lab testing, inspection and food safety audit.

“It was found by examination of the test reports dated April 19 that the products did not meet the minimum required safety and quality standards and, therefore, were not fit for human consumption and pose a potentially significant health hazard to the public and it is also a serious violation of the law and regulations,” said the letter reviewed by Dawn.

Therefore, the SFA chief under relevant sections of the Sindh Food Authority Act 2016 has issued an order for “initiating full food recall” against the products as the magnitude of the health and safety violations being committed are on such a scale that it warrants action under the S-24 (of the said Act) to prevent any public health crisis.

The company has been directed to “immediately withdraw the affected products from the market to prevent any further health risks to the public, to cease production and sale of the said products with immediate effect and to provide detailed information regarding the available stock of the affected products, including its location and quantity to the SFA without fail within three days,” it added.

The DG’s order also provides a ‘remedy’ to the accused person /company. “If it feels aggrieved by such order, (the company/person) may pursue appropriate remedy i.e. appeal under relevant law of the said Act to the SFA Board within a period of one week,” says the letter.

It further said that the SFA reserved its right to initiate “further proceedings for any violation and offences committed under the said Act by the accused, including penal action under the relevant sections of the said law and criminal legal proceedings as well under Pakistan Penal Code”.

The company has not released any statement to the media regarding the SFA action.

Published in Dawn, July 16th, 2024