The Food and Drugs Administration (FDA), Jammu & Kashmir, has prohibited the sale, storage, distribution and display of 10 identified brands and batches of ghee across the Union Territory after laboratory analysis found the products to be sub-standard, unsafe or misbranded.
The action has been taken under the provisions of the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, following examination of samples by notified food analysts at the National Food Laboratory, Ghaziabad, and the Food Testing Laboratory, Kashmir.
The affected products are Dairy Mohan Desi Ghee (Batch No. 05), Apna Dairy Milk Desi Ghee (Batch No. DM-06), Milk Bite Cow Ghee (Batch No. 137), Nandni Desi Ghee (Batch No. ND-28), Shahi Taj Desi Ghee (Batch No. 134), Daawat Fresh (Batch No. VT09), Nand Krishna Cow Ghee (Batch No. PC-05-26), Vandu Cow Ghee (Batch No. D143), Dairy Milk Desi Ghee (Batch No. OM12), and Mohan Dairy Ghee (Batch No. 06).
Samples of the affected products were collected from different parts of Jammu and Kashmir, including Anantnag, Shangus, Larnoo, Bijbehara, Samba, Kathua, Jammu, Tral and Pampore.
Laboratory findings included the presence of beta-sitosterol or foreign vegetable fat, a positive Baudouin test, abnormal fatty-acid profiles and deviations from prescribed physicochemical parameters.
The FDA has directed all Food Business Operators (FBOs), wholesalers, distributors and retailers to immediately stop the sale, distribution and display of the affected batches and ensure that the products are withdrawn from circulation.
The concerned FBOs have also been directed to submit details of the stock of the affected batches to the concerned Designated Officer within 48 hours. Enforcement authorities have been instructed to maintain strict vigil and take necessary action to prevent further circulation of the prohibited products.
The Administration reiterated that, under applicable food safety standards, ghee must be derived exclusively from milk or milk products, and ghee containing any added matter not exclusively derived from milk fat is not permitted for sale.
The prohibition has been imposed with immediate effect across Jammu and Kashmir in the interest of public health and consumer safety. The FDA has urged consumers to remain vigilant and check the brand name, batch number and date of packing while purchasing ghee.
Consumers and retailers have also been advised to report the sale or availability of any of the prohibited batches to the concerned Food Safety authorities.
The FDA clarified that the prohibitory action is a precautionary measure taken in the public interest and does not affect the statutory right of the concerned FBOs to seek re-analysis through an FSSAI-notified Referral Laboratory in accordance with the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, and the rules framed thereunder.
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