Sediments found in two brands of Kingfisher beer, Karnataka stops sale of batches

The bottled beers, according to the letter, were supplied to depots of the Karnataka State Breweries Corporation Limited and retail vendors in the district. “It is hereby requested to stop/separate the beers in the interest of the consumers,” the letter read.

According to A Ravishankar, deputy commissioner of excise for Mysuru Rural, sediments were found in Kingfisher Strong and Kingfisher Ultra Premium Beer. “The batch was produced on July 15 and the in-house chemist had given a report that it was fit for consumption. Subsequently, chemical analysis by the department also cleared the batch. The sediments were not present during production and supply. It was found 10 days after the batch was produced,” he said, adding that a case was registered by the department against the brewery.

A total of 74,688 boxes were produced and around 45,500 of them were supplied, he said. In Bengaluru, around 11,000 bottles were supplied.

S L Rajendra Prasad, additional commissioner of excise, said the department had formed an investigation team to further analyse samples from the bottles after the brewery admitted to the presence of sediments in one brand.