PANAJI
Inspectors of the Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) on Sunday seized around 1.3 tonnes of poultry meat (chicken) and later destroyed the consignment for illegalities including failure to follow SOPs for hygienic transportation and other standards stipulated in the rules.
FDA sources said that the chicken meat was being imported into Goa “illegally” from Karnataka and that two vehicles bearing registration numbers of the neighbouring State had also been seized.
The FDA team was carrying out routine inspections of vehicles transporting food items from Karnataka since early Sunday morning.
After halting and checking some 25 vehicles for fish, the team of FDA officials stumbled upon these two vehicles: a tempo from which 700 kgs of chicken was seized, and another vehicle which was transporting 610 kgs.
The market value of the seized chicken meat was pegged at Rs 1.3 lakhs, the FDA said, adding that transporting meat, mutton and fish is governed by minimum health standard rules which had been violated in the case of both these vehicles.
“The manner in which the chicken meat was being transported would have rendered it unfit for human consumption,” the agency said.
FDA Director Shweta Desai supervised the operation conducted by a team of officers including Sanjyot Kudalkar, Rajaram Patil, Shailesh Shenvi, Atul Desai and others.
The FDA had reported similar seizures of chicken meat being imported into the State about a month ago in mid-August.
In that case, around 1.7 tonnes of chicken and 500 kgs of paneer were being transported in a similar fashion from Karnataka without following the stipulated health and hygiene standards through the border check-posts at Patardevi, Keri and Mollem.
