Karnataka Food Safety Drive: Six Sweet Shops Closed, Over 800 Kg of Products Seized
Statewide inspections uncover expired food, labelling violations, poor hygiene and other food safety concerns across several districts.
The Karnataka Food Safety and Drug Administration Department has temporarily closed six sweet shops and seized more than 800 kg of food products during a statewide inspection drive.
Officials found expired food, incomplete or misleading labels, unhygienic production and storage areas, fly infestation and the use of unauthorised artificial colours at several establishments.
The inspections were carried out on Monday, August 31, across Bengaluru Urban and Rural, the Greater Bengaluru Authority area, Mysuru, Dakshina Kannada, Belagavi, Kalaburagi and Hubballi Dharwad. The drive was conducted on the directions of Health and Family Welfare Minister UT Khader.
Among the establishments temporarily closed were Bikaner Sweets on Magadi Road in Bengaluru, Maharaja Sweets in Kalaburagi and Swagath Sweets in Mangaluru.
Bikaner Sweets was shut after inspectors reported unhygienic conditions and problems with product labelling. Maharaja Sweets was also closed over food safety violations.
At Swagath Sweets, officials found hygiene and labelling issues and said the shop was operating without the required food licence.
Major seizures during inspections
At Balaji Milk Khova in Bengaluru, officials seized 400 kg of khova products. The seizure included 150 kg of kalakand khova and 250 kg of khova, with an estimated value of Rs 77,500.
Inspectors said the products were missing several mandatory label details and that the premises did not meet required hygiene standards.
At Word of Mysore Pack in Mysuru, officials seized 367 kg of ready to eat savouries, 4 kg of cocoa powder, 4.5 kg of cracked cocoa beans and 6 kg of khova. The seized products were valued at around Rs 1.56 lakh.
At Asha Sweets in Yeshwanthpur, officials confiscated about 49 kg of tea powder, 20 kg of khova and kalakand and 2.5 kg of pistachios over suspected violations. Samples were collected for further examination.
Officials at Lal Sweets Pvt Ltd seized around 60 kg of products, including banana chips and chakli masala, after finding that mandatory declarations were missing. The unit also had fly infestation and unhygienic conditions.
At Mithai Factory in Bengaluru, inspectors seized 14 packets of incorrectly labelled chikki, five litres of expired Nandini curd and 19 packets of chocolate decoration materials with improper labelling.
In Belagavi, around 10 kg of expired chocolate flavouring was seized from A1 Purohit. Officials also disposed of 5 kg of rasgulla following prescribed procedures.
Samples sent for testing
At Sandesh Sweets in Bengaluru, four samples suspected of not meeting food safety standards were collected and sent to a government laboratory for analysis.
Officials also inspected Triveni Bakery and Mita Bharat in Hubballi, Kalyani Sweets and A1 Kunda in Belagavi, India Sweets and Venkateshwara Sweets in Bengaluru and Popular Bakery in Puttur.
Several establishments were issued notices over hygiene concerns and other violations.
The FSDA said inspectors found expired products, misleading or incomplete labels, poor manufacturing and storage conditions, fly infestation and unauthorised artificial colours at various units.
Some packaged food products were also missing important information required under food safety rules. This included the manufacturer’s name and address, batch number, manufacturing date, use by date, maximum retail price and FSSAI licence or registration number.
The inspections were conducted under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 and the Food Safety and Standards Licensing and Registration of Food Businesses Rules, 2011.
Samples collected during the inspections included sweets, khova, jalebi, Mysore Pak, mixture, pulses, cooking oil and fresh oil. These will be tested at government laboratories.
FSDA Commissioner K Srinivas said legal action would be taken against food business operators found violating food safety laws.
The department said similar inspections would continue across Karnataka, with particular focus on expired products, misbranding, improper labelling, unhygienic production conditions and other violations that could endanger public health.