India’s FSSAI Starts Prosecution Over Feed Bran and Substandard Milk
The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has initiated criminal prosecution proceedings under the Food Safety and Standards Act of 2006. The proceedings name Surya Food and Agro Limited, which manufactures the Priyagold brand, commercial milk processor Dodla Dairy Limited and organic distributor UEIR Organic Foods.
The cases follow earlier suspensions of manufacturing licences after inspections by state and central food-safety authorities. Investigators converted their findings into formal complaints after reviewing factory conditions, production practices and laboratory results.
At a bakery facility, inspection teams found gunny bags of wheat bran marked for bovine cattle feed being used in biscuit dough. The inspections also recorded weaknesses in pest control, the storage of raw materials without adequate separation, possible cross-contamination during dough handling and inadequate employee-sanitation procedures.
Separate retail sampling of Dodla Dairy full-cream milk found that its milk-fat content did not comply with the applicable national composition requirements. The product was classified as substandard in laboratory analysis. The source also reports pesticide-residue violations in consignments of processed raisins linked to the investigation.
Food-safety officials said the enforcement action was based on complaints from consumers, surveillance audits and factory inspections. The proceedings are intended to apply statutory penalties in the cases and address the use of non-food-grade raw materials in packaged foods, according to the account of the enforcement action.
The reported full-cream milk standard requires a minimum milk-fat content of 6%. The investigation therefore covered both the composition of a finished dairy product and the conditions in which food ingredients were handled. The cases now move from administrative measures, including licence suspensions, to criminal proceedings under India’s food-safety law.
