Altered mfd, exp dates: Navi Mumbai police seize expired Maggi, Lay’s

Mumbai: In a shocking food safety violation, the Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration (FDA), along with the Navi Mumbai Police Crime Branch, has busted a racket allegedly involved in altering manufacturing and expiry dates on packaged food products and selling expired goods in the market.

The operation was uncovered during joint inspections conducted between August 24 and 29 at Sadhana Enterprises in the TTC Industrial Area of Turbhe. Officials found that the group was allegedly changing or replacing the manufacturing and expiry dates printed on food packets to make expired or unusable products appear fit for sale.

The racket also involved removing the original labels that carried ingredient and nutritional information and replacing them with fresh stickers, officials found. The seized stock included popular products such as Maggi, Lay’s, Kurkure, and Fun Flips, as well as Maggi Masala, Atta Noodles, and various ready-to-eat and ready-to-cook food items.

The FDA seized 8,442 cartons linked to 10 export companies, with the stock valued at Rs 75,21,269. Unlabelled and expired food products worth an additional Rs 30,600 were also recovered, taking the total value of the seized goods to around Rs 75.52 lakh.

Following the discovery, the FDA suspended Sadhana Enterprises’ licence. Samples were also collected from Unique Fragrances and Pristine Worldwide after officials found that the firms allegedly lacked the required FSSAI licences and purchase bills.

A case has been registered at Turbhe police station under various provisions of the Food Safety and Standards Act and the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. A detailed investigation into the racket is underway.