Over 4,000 litre of adulterated oil seized from Chennai store

The shop does not have a licence to store such a huge quantity of oil. Though it looks like a small shop from outside, they have a space underground where they had stored this oil in a sump. Everyday several barrels of oil were brought here in trucks and deposited in the sump. They have a huge tank on the top floor. They used to pump the oil from the sump using a motor. It is a crime to sell oil without any package, label, ISI mark, the address of the company, or the manufacturing date, etc. I urge the retailers not to sell oil on loose. We will initiate action against such shops,” Dr Satheesh Kumar, designated food safety officer in Chennai, told the reporters.

The shop was sealed and a notice issued to the owner. The officials noted that they have sent the samples of the oil to the laboratory. Further action will be taken depending on the result, the officials said.

When asked about the wrong practices followed by the eating outlets in Chennai, the officer has urged the owners of fast-food eateries to desist from serving meat delicacies which have been marinated and stored for over two days. He also asked the public not to consume food with artificial colours.

He said apart from the permissible amount of food colour, the fast foods should not add any other colour to make the dish look appealing to the customers. “Re-cooked oil is not allowed at all,” he said.

Commenting on the ‘shawarma’ controversy, Dr Satheesh Kumar said that the Arabic dish ‘shawarma’ is good food if it is prepared, stored and heated properly.

(Any complaint from the public regarding hygiene and food quality can be informed to the officials at their WhatsApp number 9444042322)