MUMBAI: Maharashtra’s food regulator is preparing a state-wide food safety plan ahead of the festive season, with FDA commissioner Tukaram Mundhe warning against excessive consumption of high-fat, salty and sugary (HFSS) products and promising strict enforcement across food establishments, schools and festive food programmes.Speaking at a ‘Meet the Press’ event organised by the Mumbai Press Club on Wednesday, Mundhe said the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) had drawn up separate measures for before, during and after the festive season.“We are putting the system in place for the festive season. Wait for a day or two; you will get that order. We are ensuring that nothing untoward happens. It is not about any particular festival, but more about only license holders should get to make and supply food,” he noted.Mundhe also urged people to exercise restraint in their food choices during the festive period, PTI reported.“Even during the festive season, avoid HFSS- high-fat, salty and sugary foods. Take them only in limited quantities. Don’t overeat. It is not really good for you. You should enjoy your health,” the 2005-batch IAS officer said.
HFSS restrictions around schools
On food sold near schools, Mundhe said restrictions on HFSS products around educational institutions had been in place since 2020 and their implementation began across India in 2021.“HFSS products have been restricted around schools. They cannot be sold, advertised, produced, transported or stored within the prescribed area,” the FDA commissioner said.He said several schools had changed their menus following the restrictions and that the FDA had received hundreds of letters and emails welcoming the move.“The larger issue is the health of children. We need to develop healthy and nutritious food habits among children. Such habits will support their physical, mental, intellectual and emotional growth,” he said.Mundhe said the FDA was also inspecting suppliers involved in the midday meal programme and testing their products. One licence had already been suspended, he said.He added that the order on balanced diets in schools had already been issued and that some existing gaps had been addressed.
Food safety checks at schools, anganwadis
The FDA has also been inspecting food supplied to anganwadis and schools, including central kitchens that prepare meals, Mundhe said.“We have also inspected the central kitchens supplying food and collected samples. The order has now been issued across Maharashtra and the work is ongoing,” he said.Inspections will continue, with a minimum number of samples to be collected every month. Schools and anganwadis will also be inspected at least twice a year, he said.
‘Mahaprasad, bhandara’ also covered by regulations
Asked about food distributed as mahaprasad and at bhandaras during the Ganesh festival, Mundhe said food safety regulations applied irrespective of the nature or stature of an event.“It is not about ‘mahaprasad’, it is not about ‘bhandaras’. It is about regulation,” he said.Mundhe said every food business operator (FBO) must have the required registration or licence and comply with prescribed food safety standards and protocols.“Wherever there are food businesses without a licence, without standards or without following the required protocols, they are violating the regulations. Whether it is prestigious or not prestigious, it does not matter,” he said.
Same rules for street food, restaurants and five-star hotels
Mundhe said the FDA would follow the same standards while inspecting street food vendors, restaurants and hotels, including five-star establishments.“Whether it is street food, a restaurant, a five-star hotel or a three-star hotel does not matter. I don’t discriminate in any food serving establishments. We go as per the regulations and standards. The food has to be safe and the prescribed processes have to be followed,” he emphasised.He said the regulator’s focus was on food safety, compliance with prescribed processes and the quality of raw materials rather than the status of an establishment.“We do not decide whether street food is good or a five-star hotel is good. We go by the regulations and the standards,” he said.Mundhe also stressed that the same approach applied to government and private establishments.“It is not about government or private. From our perspective, it is an FBO- a Food Business Operator. There is no category called government FBO and private FBO. An FBO is an FBO,” he asserted.He said more than 115 government and semi-government establishments had been inspected in the past few weeks and the licences of around 20 to 25 of them had been suspended for multiple violations.
Maharashtra FDA checks medicine quality
On medicines, Mundhe said any doubt over the quantity stated on a medicine strip could be verified through testing.“Whatever is claimed on the medicine is expected to be there. If it says 5 mg, that quantity has to be present,” he said.Medicines that fail to meet prescribed standards could be classified as substandard, misbranded or spurious and action would follow, he cautioned.On generic medicines, Mundhe said whether a drug was generic or non-generic was not the basis for FDA enforcement.“Generic medicines have the same formulations. There is no difference in efficacy simply because a medicine is generic,” he said, adding that the regulator checks whether medicines meet the required standards or are substandard or spurious.(With agency inputs)
