The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has seized 575 kg of mangoes, worth ₹72,000, from fruit stalls in Coimbatore after they were found to have been ripened using ethylene sachets in an unapproved way. According to the FSSAI, ethylene sachets, used as a ripening agent, were found in contact with the mangoes in the trays.
As per FSSAI regulations, the ripening agent should not come in direct contact with fruits. The food regulator, which conducted surprise inspections in fruit warehouses, and wholesale and retail stalls from 24-29 April 2023, also served notices on eight shops for stocking and selling mangoes ripened using ethylene sachets directly. According to the FSSAI, a total of 231 fruit stalls in the district were inspected across the district.
Food Safety Officers also checked the hygiene at juice stalls and the quality of packaged drinking water during the exercise. They inspected 22 packaged drinking water units and 135 distribution units in Coimbatore district. Notices were served on four packaged drinking water units for violations under Section 55 of the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006. Manufacturers and distributors have been instructed not to store packaged drinking water under direct sunlight in the summer. Distributors were told to transport packaged drinking water in covered goods carriers.
