The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has suspended the food business licence of Delhi’s Seven Seas Hospitality, based in Rohini, over non-compliance with norms and violations, including the presence of fungus, cockroaches, and house flies in the kitchen.
Last week, FSSAI announced it had initiated penal action against multiple e-commerce operators for food safety and regulatory non-compliances. The FSSAI described the kitchen condition as filthy and that food inspectors observed poor hygiene and sanitation conditions, including water stagnation, foul odour, filth and inadequate housekeeping in food preparation areas. Rotten capsicum and degraded cooking oils were also found. The regulator also pointed out food storage deficiencies, including inadequate segregation of vegetarian and non-vegetarian foods. “In view of the violation of food safety rules, the FSSAI has suspended its licence to Seven Seas Hospitality Pvt. Ltd with immediate effect. In a major crackdown, the food safety regulator has been inspecting food businesses and also e-commerce platforms for violation of regulations under the FSS Act. The action targeted platforms such as Amazon, Swiggy Instamart, Bigbasket, Flipkart India, and Zepto for selling food items such as dates, milk, and yoghurt with misleading claims.
In a social media post on Wednesday, FSSAI informed that it found “serious non-compliances” during the inspection of the food premises. The company achieved a “compliance score of only 30%”, the regulator mentioned in its post. “Deteriorated food materials” were found, including fungal growth on tomatoes, papaya, jaggery, and cashew nuts. The FSSAI officials destroyed “74 kg/litres” of non-compliant food articles on the premises. The company has been directed to cease all food business activities during the suspension period with immediate effect,” said the food safety regulator in the post.
