The Maharashtra FDA has seized 28,753 quintals of edible oil valued at Rs 18.95 crore and suspended 80 food business licences during a statewide enforcement drive against manufacturers, repackers, relabellers, wholesalers and retailers.
The action was taken between April 1 and October 29, according to a press note issued by the Food and Drug Administration and reported by Mid-Day. The department conducted 1,089 inspections across Maharashtra and collected 1,660 edible oil samples for laboratory analysis.
Of the reports received so far, 462 samples conformed to prescribed standards, while 40 were found to be substandard, 18 unsafe and five misbranded. Laboratory reports for 1,171 samples are still awaited. The FDA said further legal action, including prosecution or adjudication, would be initiated against operators whose samples are found to be substandard, unsafe or misbranded.
The 80 suspended licences were spread across the state’s seven divisions. Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar recorded the highest number of suspensions at 27, followed by Pune with 22 and Greater Mumbai with eight. Kokan, Nagpur and Nashik recorded six suspensions each, while Amravati recorded five. Establishments operating under suspended licences have been prohibited from conducting food business under those licences.
The FDA cited several grounds for action, including the sale of edible oil from reused tins and unlabelled containers, suspected substandard or adulterated oil, the absence of an in-house laboratory or technical personnel, unhygienic manufacturing and storage conditions, and violations of labelling requirements. Seized stock cannot be sold, moved, transferred, repacked, relabelled or disposed of without prior written directions from the competent authority.
The Pune division recorded the largest quantity of seized edible oil at 19,551.83 quintals, followed by Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar with 5,736.27 quintals. The latter division accounted for seized stock valued at Rs 8.34 crore. Kokan recorded seizures of 2,146.06 quintals worth Rs 5.44 crore, while Greater Mumbai accounted for 506.70 quintals valued at Rs 67.13 lakh.
Nashik recorded seizures of 388.65 quintals worth Rs 73.53 lakh, Nagpur 255.96 quintals worth Rs 51.65 lakh and Amravati 167.61 quintals worth Rs 56.17 lakh. In Greater Mumbai, the eight establishments facing licence suspensions included businesses in Kurla, Byculla, Nagpada, Goregaon, Ghatkopar, Malad and Kandivali. The FDA also listed establishments in Bhiwandi, Panvel, Kalyan-Shilphata and Turbhe among those covered by the action.
The department has directed food businesses to maintain valid licences or registrations, operate in-house laboratories where required, and keep complete records of purchases, production and sales. It has also warned operators against using reused tins or unlabelled containers for repacking edible oil and said strict action would follow in cases involving adulterated, substandard or unsafe products under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006.
Consumers have been advised to buy edible oil only from licensed or registered sellers and in the manufacturer’s original, sealed and properly labelled packaging. The FDA said buyers should check the manufacturer’s name and address, FSSAI licence number, batch or lot number, manufacturing and packing dates, best-before or expiry date and net weight. Suspected adulteration, poor-quality oil or unauthorised sales can be reported through the FDA’s toll-free helpline, 1800222365, or its grievance portal.
