LAHORE, April 11: The food laboratory of the City District Government, Lahore (CDGL), has issued adulterators bogus fitness certificates of analysis, Executive District Officer (Health) Dr Inamul Haq states in a report sent to District Coordination Officer Muhammad Ijaz.

The official was found indulging in malpractice of issuance of defective results around a couple of months ago, the report says, adding senior authorities had been informed about the matter. The public analyst was directed “to look into the matter and deliver reports and certificates in accordance with the provisions of law,” the EDO’s report says.

The report says a food inspector seized 360 kg of red chillies powder from Sheikhupura General Store, Township, on January 1, 2007, and sent samples for analysis to the food laboratory.

The seized sample was certified by the public analyst “genuine and conforming to the standard of red chillies prescribed under the Pure Food Rules of 1965 in the certificate of analysis issued on March 20.

The analysis report said that no foreign starch or prohibited colouring dye was found in the sample while the ratio of ash and Butyro Refractrometer value of the extracted fat at 40 degree Celsius were also under permissible limits of 7 percent and 72.

On the basis of the report, the owner of the seized stock, Muhammad Asghar, submitted an application for the release of the commodity.

Before releasing the stock, the public analyst was called on April 9 for confirmatory re-analysis of the portion of the sample retained by the food inspector for the future comparison as prescribed in the “Methods of Taking Samples”.

The retained portion of sample along with the samples taken out from the seized bags of red chillies was analysed in the presence of district food officer and others and the results were found contrary to the fitness certificate of analysis.

The EDO (health) says that in the latter analysis it was found that the samples contained prohibited colouring dye as well as foreign starch.

The seized stock was released as the department could not retain it under the law after issue of the (though bogus) fitness certificate, the EDO says, demanding action against the public analyst for putting health of citizens at stake by issuing certificates declaring unfit edibles as fit for human consumption.

SOFT DRINKS SEIZED: A food squad of the CDGL on Wednesday seized 3,408 bottles of fake soft drinks of international brands in four raids.