‘Loose motions’ Dozens sickened at Vasai hostel

Posted on January 21, 2015 by Douglas Powell

Of the 31 boys who were rushed to Sir D M Petit Municipal Hospital in Vasai, India, Monday night after they suffered from food poisoning at a government hostel, two more were admitted at the hospital on Tuesday after they complained of body ache, bringing the total number of those admitted to four.

The condition of the four is stable, hospital sources said. According to on-duty medical officer at Sir D M Petit Municipal Hospital in Vasai, two students, Sagar Sable and Siddhesh Kamble, were admitted on Monday night while two other, Sameer Dhodhade and Mangesh Wangad, were brought in on Tuesday morning.

The 27 other students, who also suffered from lose motions, were treated on out-patient department (OPD) basis and did not require admission.

The boys, all residing in government-run Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar Government Boys Hostel in Vasai, allegedly suffered from food poisoning after eating lunch at the hostel’s canteen. The hostel houses around 62 boys, and lunch comprised chapatis, lady finger dry vegetable, salad, lentil (dal) and rice. Kamble, who had visited his parents for the weekend and had brought a tiffin from home, had also tasted the hostel’s food.

India midday meal horror: 23 kids get food poisoning, admitted to Sion hospital

Posted on January 14, 2015 by Douglas Powell

In yet another case of food poisoning due to midday meals, 23 schoolchildren, all 13-year-olds were admitted to Sion hospital on Tuesday. The incident occurred at 3.40pm in Dayanand Balak Vidyalaya, Matunga East.

The children were admitted for observation after at least six started vomitting and got loose motions. Others complained of pain in the abdomen, said Dr Avinash Supe, dean, Sion hospital. “We have administered intravenous drugs and other antibiotics to the children. Fortunately, all are stable and under observation,” he added.

India: Adulterated sugar samples seized

Posted on January 13, 2015 by Douglas Powell

Tilkut and other sweet products are high in demand before Makar Sankranti. However, one must be careful while buying these products as they may be adulterated. This came to light during raids conducted by the food safety wing of the health department on a few shops at Kadamkuan.

The team collected samples of sugar and jaggery from about 20 shops. Sugar was found mixed with fine plastic crystals that naked eye can’t see. However, if sugar with crystals is added to cold water, it will not dissolve and settle at the surface of the container. However, if this test is done with milk or tea, the result may not be conclusive as even adulterated sugar gets dissolved.

The jaggery was suspected to be mixed with non-edible colours. However, it can be confirmed only after we get test results from a laboratory, said food inspector Sudama Chaudhary.

India to provide training for meat, fish sellers

Posted on January 3, 2015 by Douglas Powell

Concerned with the health of citizens, the food department of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will register meat and fish sellers and train them on hygiene maintenance in four states, including Maharashtra, from January 1 to 15 in the markets, as well as at its headquarters.

The move has been taken after the FDA registered several complaints regarding the standards of non-vegetarian products across nation. “It was long overdue. I have been making inspections since I occupied the chair and felt that this area had been ignored so far,” said Suresh Annapure, joint commissioner, food, FDA.

Proper registration will help the FDA keep track of vendors violating the rules.

Nine restaurants under India FDA radar for being unclean on New Year Eve

Posted on January 2, 2015 by Douglas Powell

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Konkan division, conducted a surprise inspection of 14 hotels and restaurants in Thane and Navi Mumbai on Wednesday night during New Year celebrations.

Nine such places came under the FDA radar that did not follow general hygiene norms. There were several complaints about the sub-standard quality of food and drinks served, owing to heavy rush.

The food safety officials collected 15 food samples, besides 13 liquor samples, in an effort to crack down on poor quality of food and drinks. The samples will be sent to Mumbai laboratory for further testing. FDA sources said that the test report was expected in a day or two, which will follow necessary action against offenders based on the Food Safety and Standards Act.

India Pizza Hut serves detergent water to customer?

Posted on January 1, 2015 by Douglas Powell

A Pizza Hut in Mumbai allegedly served water to a customer that seemed to have been contaminated with dishwashing detergent.

“I had gone to Pizza Hut on Monday for lunch at Inorbit Mall, Vashi. I was served water after finishing my lunch around 2.20 pm or so. I felt nauseated as soon as I drank it. The water served in the glass was not only foul smelling but extremely pungent and bitter. While I had gulped down some quantity, I spat the rest out as my mouth turned foul with the taste and questioned the waiter, who said that the water might have been served from a jar containing lemonade,” Pai said.

He added that the lame excuse irked him further and he demanded an answer to what he was served and asked for someone senior to get clarity as it was a question of his health. “A floor manager who identified himself as Savio came to me and after some discussions, smelled the water and tried to convince me that it was nothing but later told me that the dishwashing detergent might have gotten mixed by mistake and refused to clarify on what was actually served. I asked him to show me the bottle of that detergent to understand the contents but he flatly refused,” Pai said, adding that he decided to call the police and soon a constable reached the outlet. What further shocked Pai was after the constable’s arrival, the floor manager gave me the phone to speak to someone.

“That man on the phone simply started talking rudely to me and claimed that I had complained previously as well and even threatened me. I finally went to the Vashi police station with the sample of the water that the constable had poured into a bottle and the cops registered a NC and told me that I would have to complain to the FDA,” Pai said.

In an email response, a Pizza Hut spokesperson said, “We at Pizza Hut would like to reiterate our commitment to the quality of our products and the well being of our customers. We maintain high quality and hygiene standards to ensure food safety at all stages of preparation including measures to ensure that the utensils and food products are clean and perfect for usage. As a responsible brand we truly value our customers and take all essential measures for their well being. We are investigating the matter.”

Animal bones to make biscuits crunchier in India?

Posted on December 31, 2014 by Douglas Powell

A raid on a food factory in Uttar Pradesh’s Moradabad unearthed mounds of animal bones on Tuesday, officials said, raising fears that the cattle remains were used to adulterate biscuits.

Sources in the food department suspected that the factory could have been using animal bones as powder or in other forms to make the biscuits “more crispy and tasty.”

Tourists in India face threat of zoonotic diseases

Posted on December 16, 2014 by Douglas Powell

Tourists are endangering their health and safety by interacting with elephants that are not screened for any zoonotic diseases, with no vaccination and treatment records with the mahouts, observed PETA.

A team of four veterinarians assessed the health of elephants and various issues came to light during the inspection.

The overall assessment of 34 elephants at Amber was carried out with the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) checklist, ‘Asian Elephant Body Condition Index’, ‘Elephant Physical Examination Record’ and ‘Elephant Medical History’.

Many serious epidemic diseases are zoonoses that originated in animals. These include rabies, Ebola virus and influenza. In a systematic review of 1,415 pathogens known to infect humans, 61% were zoonotic.

“The owners/mahouts did not have any record of vaccination and treatments carried out in the past for their elephants. They did not maintain vaccination register nor the disease and treatment register,” said Dr Manilal Valliyate from PETA.

Over 1,700 eateries raided in Ernakulam, India

Posted on December 13, 2014 by Douglas Powell

The district health department on Friday raided 1,708 hotels, restaurants and other eateries in Ernakulam and slapped closure notices on 19 hotels. The hotels were found selling stale food items. Notices were also served to 316 hotels to rectify the defects detected during the raid.

A canteen run by KSRTC at its depot in Paravoor was among the eateries shut down by the department. Earlier this year, KSRTC’s canteen at Aluva depot was closed due to unhygienic conditions.

Around 80 hotels, situated in and around Aluva town, downed shutters till afternoon in protest against the health department’s decision to close down four hotels in Aluva.

The Kerala Hotels and Restaurants Association (KHRA) said the raid was baseless and health officials were ignorant about the Food Safety and Standards Act.

Health officials said the raid was conducted as part of ensuring hygiene during the Sabarimala pilgrimage season.

FoodSafetyHelpline introduces mobile app in India

Posted on December 5, 2014 by Douglas Powell

FoodSafetyHelpline.com — a platform for accumulating and learning information on food safety and standards Act, and its rules and regulations — has introduced a mobile app on Food Safety, which will facilitate food business operators in India, and help them understand, learn and implement the requirements of Food Safety Standards Act 200.

Featuring all the related blogs, webinars and food inspection tools, this app is expected to fill in the essential requirements to identify gaps and learn accordingly.

Food business operators from across the industry are connected with the portal for their regulatory and food operations requirements. FoodSafetyHelpline.com subscribers are FBOs, consultants, suppliers, etc., who regularly participate in the activities of this portal.

Currently the mobile app is available only for android phone users.

barfblog

safe food from farm to fork

Tag Archives: india