The number of food samples declared non-standard in Ahmedabad has risen nearly 150 per cent in a year, the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation's Food Safety Department said on Saturday, releasing its January-to-October figures. The department collected 7,339 food samples in the first ten months of 2026, of which 327 were declared non-standard. In the same period last year it had collected 4,071 samples and declared 131 non-standard.

Source: IANS

327Non-standard samples, Jan–Oct 2026
131Same period in 2025
7,339Samples collected this year
19Establishments sealed

Administrative charges collected by the department rose alongside the enforcement push, from Rs 62.11 lakh in January–October 2025 to Rs 1.01 crore in the same period this year. The department said it would intensify inspections of food establishments across the city, with action taken under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006.

Festive-season drive: 27 samples fail, 19 units sealed

In its latest inspection report, covering 1 October to 2 November — the Navratri and Diwali rush — the department collected 841 samples from food businesses across Ahmedabad's zones. Of these, 27 failed testing: two were declared unsafe and 25 substandard, according to a Times of India report on the drive. Teams inspected 2,226 establishments and issued notices to 660 of them.

Source: The Times of India, reported by Urban Acres

Nineteen establishments were sealed or closed for violations including operating without a valid FSSAI licence or registration, unhygienic conditions, and discrepancies in ingredients used to manufacture sauces. The drive also destroyed 1,345 kg of food and 1,289 litres of liquids, and ran 614 tests for total polar compounds — a measure of how far cooking oil has degraded through repeated heating.

Among the failed products, the Times of India report identified ketchup samples collected from MJF Food in Behrampura and Shree Khodiyar Gruh Udyog in Gota that reportedly contained no tomato, showed high levels of starch, and carried unpermitted synthetic colours including Sunset Yellow, Ponceau 4R, Tartrazine Yellow and Carmoisine. The civic body said action against the operators concerned was being taken under the food safety law.