Nov 28, 2015

DINAKARAN NEWS



940 சர்க்கரை மூட்டை பறிமுதல்: தனியார் குடோனுக்கு சீல் வைப்பு

ஓமலூர்: ஓமலூரில் வெல்லம் தயாரிக்க, கர்நாடகாவிலிருந்து கொண்டு வரப்பட்ட, 940 சர்க்கரை மூட்டைகளை உணவு பாதுகாப்பு அதிகாரிகள் பறிமுதல் செய்தனர்.
சேலம் மாவட்டம், ஓமலூர் மற்றும் அதை சுற்றியுள்ள பகுதியில் வெல்லம் தயாரிக்கும் ஆலைகள் செயல்படுகிறது. இவர்களில் சிலர், விதிமுறை மீறி, சர்க்கரை மூலம் வெல்லம் தயாரிக்கும் பணியில் ஈடுபடுகின்றனர். இதையடுத்து, சேலம் மாவட்ட உணவு பாதுகாப்பு நியமன அலுவலர் அனுராதா தலைமையிலான குழுவினர், நேற்று, ஓமலூர் அடுத்த, நாலுகால்பாலம், சர்க்கரைசெட்டிப்பட்டி, காமலாபுரம் உள்ளிட்ட பகுதியில், வாகன தணிக்கையில் ஈடுபட்டனர். அப்போது, அவ்வழியாக சென்ற மூன்று மினி லாரிகளை மடக்கி விசாரித்தனர். அவர்கள், கர்நாடகாவில் இருந்து, 240 சர்க்கரை மூட்டைகளை, வெல்லம் தயாரிக்கும் ஆலைக்கு கொண்டு செல்ல முயன்றது. அதையடுத்து, அந்த சர்க்கரை மூட்டைகளை அதிகாரிகள் பறிமுதல் செய்து, லாரியில் வந்த பன்னீர்செல்வம், குமார், பழனிவேல் ஆகியோரிடம் விசாரணை நடத்தி வருகின்றனர். மேலும், காமலாபுரம் பகுதியில் சோதனையிட்ட போது, அங்கு தனியார் அரிசி குடோனில் வைக்கப்பட்டிருந்த, 700 சர்க்கரை மூட்டைகளை பறிமுதல் செய்து, அந்த குடோனுக்கு உணவு பாதுகாப்பு அதிகாரிகள் சீல் வைத்து விசாரித்து வருகின்றனர்.

Nestle India Questions Lucknow Lab Test on Pasta

NEW DELHI: Nestle India, which is facing a fresh controversy over its pasta products after Maggi noodles, today questioned the validity of lab test done by the Uttar Pradesh government saying it was neither "NABL accredited" nor "notified by FSSAI".
Reiterating that its MAGGI Pazzta is 100 per cent safe, Nestle India said that Lucknow-based National Foods Analysis Laboratory and its reports can not be relied upon.
"The media reports also mention that the tests have been conducted at National Foods Analysis Laboratory, Lucknow. The laboratory is not National Accreditation Board For Testing And Calibration Laboratories (NABL) accredited nor is notified by Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI). The results of the laboratories which are not accredited cannot be relied upon," said a Nestle India spokesperson.
The company further added that it came to know about the alleged presence of lead in its pasta through media reports only, and it is investigating these claims.
"We have not received any formal notification from the authorities in UP or from the FSSAI about such test results," he said adding: "We will work with the authorities to resolve the situation as quickly as possible."
On Friday, a Uttar Pradesh state government official has claimed that they had foundpresence of lead in Nestle's Pazzta beyond permissible limits.
Pasta samples collected from Nestle distributor -- Sriji Traders -- at Mau district in the state on June 10, were sent to a government food testing laboratory in Lucknow, designated Officer at Food and Drug Administration,Mau, Arvind Yadav said on Friday.
"According to report received on September 2, they failed the tests," he added.
"The standard limit is 2.5 PPM (parts per million) while it has been found to be 6 PPM. The letter informing Nestle company sent at its Modinagar address has come back here undelivered," Mr Yadav said.
As per the company's website, Nestle sells pasta under its brand Maggi Pazzta in four flavours - Masala Penne, Cheese Macaroni, Mushroom Penne and Tomato Twist.

Maggi pasta unsafe, doubts UP lab

Foods maker Nestle has landed in trouble yet again with its pasta food samples. After tests being conducted at a food testing laboratory in Uttar Pradesh, the pasta was found to be carrying lead beyond the permissible limits.
An officer at the Food and Drug Administration, said that after Maggi, the sample of macroni pasta was taken from Mau and sent to the National Food Analysis Laboratory in Lucknow.
He said that the samples contained 6 PPM, which is much more than the permissible limit, that can't exceed the standard limit of 2.5 parts per million (PPM).
Nestle India has said, it was not aware of any test done on its pasta brands. The company's spokesperson said that they would need to see the contents of reports and confirm whether the tests were conducted at FSSAI Notified and NABL accredited laboratory that has the expertise and is certified for testing lead under the Food Safety and Standards Act. The spokesperson also said that Nestle's products are safe for consumption.

Fresh trouble for Nestle: UP lab finds Maggi Pazzta sample with excess lead

Nestle claims it never got any notice from Lucknow lab, says its product ‘100% safe’

Days after it relaunched its instant Maggi noodles, the Nestle India has landed in fresh trouble, with its pasta products —- sold under the brand name Maggi Pazzta —- found to be carrying lead beyond permissible limits in tests carried out at state-owned food testing laboratory in Lucknow. The company, however, said its products are safe to consume.
Pazzta samples collected from Nestle distributor – Sriji Traders – in Mau on June 10, were sent to a government food testing laboratory in Lucknow, said Arvind Yadav, designated officer at food and drug administration (FDA), Mau.
“The samples were taken from Mau and sent to National Food Analysis Laboratory, Lucknow. According to report received on September 2, the samples failed the tests. The standard limit is 2.5 PPM (parts per million) while it has been found to be 6 PPM (in the samples),” Yadav said.
The official said a letter informing the Nestle company sent at its Modinagar address a month ago “has come back here undelivered”. Yadav also showed the undelivered letter to media persons.
The company, however, said that it has not received any formal notification from the authorities in UP or from Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) about such results, but added that , “We will work with authorities to resolve the situation as quickly as possible.”
“Maggi Pazzta is 100 per cent safe. The finished product and the raw materials used to make it undergo rigorous testing during every stage of the manufacturing process. We have seen media reports claiming that lead has been found in the product and we are investigating. We regret the confusion that these reports may be causing. They are safe to consume,” a Nestle India spokesperson said in a statement.
However, FDA officer Yadav said, “On the basis of the report, this food product now comes under the ‘unsafe food category’.”
“The report has been sent to the FDA Commissioner (Lucknow) on October 12 for sanction to lodge a case and in case it is received, it will be filed in the court of the CJM here,” Yadav said.
The official, to questions, said, “It can also lead to banning the product”.
Meanwhile, District Magistrate Vaibhav Srivasatav said, “The sample, which has failed the test, is of June and we will take immediate action on the directives…we are in touch (with the authorities) on phone”.
In June, Nestle had to take Maggi noodles off the shelves after FSSAI banned the product terming it “unsafe and hazardous” for human consumption. However, the Bombay High Court later ordered lifting of the ban and fresh tests, which the product cleared. Subsequently, the noodles were relaunched.

UP Lab Now Finds Nestle Pasta Unsafe, Lead Beyond Permissible Limit

After Maggi noodles, Nestle's pasta has now landed in trouble as its samples, tested at a state-owned food testing laboratory, were found to be carrying lead beyond permissible limits, a state government official said today.
Pasta samples collected from Nestle distributor -- Sriji Traders -- here on June 10, were sent to a government food testing laboratory in Lucknow, said Arvind Yadav, Designated Officer at Food and Drug Administration Mau.
The company, however, said its products are safe to consume.
"We will work with the authorities to resolve the situation as quickly as possible," Nestle India said in a statement.
"After Maggi, the sample of macroni pasta was taken from Mau and sent to National Food Analysis Laboratory, Lucknow in which the lead was found to be much more that the permissible limit," Yadav said.
"According to report received on September 2, they failed the tests," the officer said.
"The standard limit is 2.5 PPM (parts per million) while it has been found to be 6 PPM. The letter informing Nestle company sent at its Modinagar address has come back here undelivered," Yadav said.
Yadav also showed the undelivered letter to media persons.
He also said, "On the basis of the report, this food product now comes under the 'unsafe food category'."
"The report has been sent to the FDA Commissioner (Lucknow) on October 12 for sanction to lodge a case and in case it is received, it will be filed in the court of the CJM here," Yadav said.
The official, to questions, said, "It can also lead to banning the product."
"They (Nestle) were sent a letter over a month ago, intimating them about the results. They had a month's time to appeal against the test but the letter sent by the FDA was not received by the company and was returned here," Yadav said.
Meanwhile, District Magistrate Vaibhav Srivasatav also said, "The sample which has failed the test is of June and we will take immediate action on the directives... We are in touch (with the authorities) on phone."
In its statement, Nestle said, "We have not received any formal notification from the authorities in UP or from the FSSAI about such results."
Stating that Maggi Pazzta is 100 per cent safe, the company further said, "The finished product and the raw materials used to make it undergo rigorous testing during every stage of the manufacturing process."
In June, Nestle had to take Maggi noodles off the shelves, after some states decided to ban it.
The move came after Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) had banned Maggi instant noodles, terming them "unsafe and hazardous" for human consumption.
However, the Bombay High Court later ordered lifting of the ban and fresh tests, which the product cleared

State food lab says it has no idea about samples taken from KFC

HYDERABAD: Four months after the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) lifted food samples from Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) outlets for tests at the State Food Laboratory (SFL), RTI activists are stumped by the conflicting versions being given by the two state bodies. 
City-based RTI activist Bakka Judson sought the status of the KFC samples by filing two applications before GHMC's food safety wing and SFL. But, both passed the buck on to each other. 
When asked about the details of samples it tested from June 2014 to August 2015, the chief public analyst of Nacharam-based SFL said: "...the information regarding KFC is not available with the lab as it is not mentioned in the memorandum to food analyst." 
"This is surprising as the admission by SFL of not having any information on KFC only goes on to show that health of the people is not a priority for the GHMC's food safety department. In other words, it only means that they did not receive the samples at all," said Bakka Judson. 
Under the memorandum to food analyst Form-VI, a food safe ty officer is required to fill details like code number, date and place of collection, name and nature of articles etc. before sending the same to the food analyst for testing. 
However, what raises more eyebrows is the claim made by the GHMC's food safety wing in another RTI reply dated November 13 (copy with TOI) that they sent 42 KFC samples as `surveillance samples for bacteriological analysis purpose and sent the same to the state food safety laboratory'. 
In its reply, the superintendent of the GHMC's health and sanitation department said that on June 26 and June 27, food safety officials of GHMC lifted 42 food samples from `various outlets of KFC in GHMC limits under the provisions of Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 and rules made thereunder for analysis purpose and sent the same to the state food laboratory'. 
It may be recalled that soon after the samples were lifted, KFC. owned by Yum! Restaurants India Pvt. Ltd, obtained an interim stay order from the High Court on July 7 by filing a writ petition against commissioner of food safety , Telangana, following which the latter filed a petition to vacate the stay .The petition is yet to be heard. 
When contacted, Dr T Damodar, one of the food safety officers (FSDOs) in GHMC's health and sanitation department, said that he could not immediately respond without seeing the RTI replies furnished by the two state government bodies.