Food safety team carries out checks at fish market, food samples seized

To combat food adulteration, a team of officials from the Punjab Food Safety Department conducted an inspection at Basti Adda Fish Market in Jalandhar on Wednesday.

The operation was led by Dr Harjot Pal Singh, Assistant Commissioner, Food Safety, under the directives of Commissioner Abhinav Trikha. The team included food safety officer Mukul Gill and senior fisheries officer Shubhwant Kaur.

The Assistant Commissioner said during the inspection, seven shops were checked, focusing on raw fish sourced from states such as Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra. Utilising on-the-spot testing kits provided by the Food and Drug Administration, Punjab, the team assessed fish for the presence of formalin — a chemical sometimes used to prolong its shelf life but hazardous to human health.

He said the government was determined to eliminate the use of formalin in fish products to ensure consumer safety. He highlighted that in another operation, food safety officer Prabhjot Kaur had seized eight samples of paneer and one sample of fat spread from the Nakodar and Shahkot areas. The samples had been sent for analysis to verify their compliance with the food safety standards.

The Assistant Commissioner emphasised that such drives would be continued in future also.

“Our goal is to eradicate food adulteration and ensure that the public has access to safe and quality food products,” he said.