QUETTA: The Balochis­tan Food Authority (BFA) said on Saturday that it was actively monitoring the quality of food and beverages across the province, with the authority’s specialised teams conducting raids on various establishments to clamp down on the sale of substandard food items and beverages.

“Actions have been taken against the provision of substandard and adulterated items in Quetta, Sibi, Nasirabad and Panjgur, where more than 20 food centres have been penalised,” Muhammad Naeem Bazai, director general of the Balochistan Food Authority, said.

He emphasised that those who sell “poison” in the name of food would not be allowed to jeopardise people’s health.

During the enforcement actions carried out by inspection teams in Quetta, Nasirabad, Sibi and Panjgur, an additional 22 food and beverage centres were fined for non-compliance with health standards.

Checking was conduct­­ed at various centres in Quetta, including Satellite Town, Jinnah Road, Prince Road and Sabzal Road.

The BFA’s mobile testing laboratories are being used to assess milk quality and test cooking oil used in frying at hotels and food shops.

Notably, 14 centres in Quetta were penalised for dealing in adulterated milk and violating health preservation standards. These centres included malls, meat shops, bakeries, hotels, samosa and pakora shops, and general stores.

At the zonal level, BFA teams seized a large quantity of expired and banned products from four general stores in Panjgur. The confiscated items included expired cold drinks, juices, spices, children’s food items and banned Chinese salt and gutka.

Expired products were confiscated from shopkeepers and later disposed of. Shopkeepers were directed to stock fresh, quality and authenticated food and beverage items from reputable companies and ensure compliance with BFA’s standard operating procedures.

Published in Dawn, March 17th, 2024