Page 2 - Food

FSSAI asks traders, not to use banned 'calcium carbide' for fruit ripening

Food regulator FSSAI has asked traders and food business operators not to use the banned product 'calcium carbide' for ripening of fruits. In an official statement, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) said it has "alerted traders'/fruits handlers/Food Business Operators (FBOs) operating ripening chambers to strictly ensure compliance with the prohibition on calcium carbide for artificial ripening of fruits, particularly during the mango season". FSSAI has also advised Food Safety Departments of states/UTs to remain vigilant and take serious action and deal stringently against person(s) indulging in such unlawful practices as per the provisions of the FSS Act, 2006, and rules/regulations made thereunder. "Calcium carbide, commonly used for ripening fruits like mangoes, releases acetylene gas, which contains harmful traces of arsenic and phosphorus. "These substances, also known as 'Masala', can cause serious health issues such as dizziness, frequent thirst, ...

FSSAI to launch quality check of food items like dairy products, spices

After starting a probe into alleged violation of norms in branded spices, food regulator FSSAI plans to launch surveillance on other food items like fortified rice, dairy products and spices sold in the domestic market. According to sources, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) is planning surveillance on food items like fruit and vegetables, salmonella in fish products; spice and culinary herbs; fortified rice; and milk and milk products. FSSAI is already taking samples of spices in powder form of all brands, including MDH and Everest, from across the country in view of quality concerns flagged by Singapore and Hong Kong. "In view of the current development, FSSAI is taking samples of spices of all brands, including MDH and Everest, from the market to check whether they meet the FSSAI norms," a source had said on April 22. FSSAI does not regulate the quality of exported spices, sources said. Early last month, Hong Kong's Center for Food Safety (CFS) asked ...

Giving food, cash to 6 million people monthly in Afghanistan, says WFP

About 15.8 million people in Afghanistan would experience food insecurity crises and emergency levels, according to UN estimates.

Wardwizard Foods & Beverages to enters US mkt as it gets USFDA registration

Wardwizard Foods and Beverages, maker of frozen and ready-to-eat foods, on Monday announced its foray into the US market following the USFDA registration. The Vadodara, Gujarat-based company will commence exporting to US market in the first quarter of this fiscal, according to a statement from the company. "The initial phase will focus on key cities including Chicago, New Jersey and Texas, where consumers will have the chance to indulge in the rich and authentic tastes of India's culinary offerings," it said. The firm offers convenient RTE (ready-to-eat) meals to frozen products, spices, savory sauces, condiments, and beverages. Chairperson and Managing Director Sheetal Bhalerao said: "The attainment of USFDA registration stands as a validation to our product quality and regulatory compliance.

Swiggy records $200 million loss in nine months to December 2023: Report

The document showed that losses stood at 17.3 billion rupees $207 million during April to December 2023 - the first nine months of fiscal year 2023-24

783 million face chronic hunger, yet world wastes 19% of its food, says UN

The world wasted an estimated 19 per cent of the food produced globally in 2022, or about 1.05 billion metric tons, according to a new United Nations report. The UN Environment Programme's Food Waste Index Report, published Wednesday, tracks the progress of countries to halve food waste by 2030. The UN said the number of countries reporting for the index nearly doubled from the first report in 2021. The 2021 report estimated that 17 per cent of the food produced globally in 2019, or 931 million metric tons (1.03 billion tons), was wasted, but authors warned against direct comparisons because of the lack of sufficient data from many countries. The report is co-authored by UNEP and Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP), an international charity. Researchers analyzed country data on households, food service and retailers. They found that each person wastes about 79 kilograms (about 174 pounds) of food annually, equal to at least 1 billion meals wasted worldwide daily. Most of t

'Zero-food children' report attempt to sensationalise fake news: WCD

The Union Ministry of Women and Child Development Tuesday denounced a recently published article on "zero-food children" in India, and labelled it as a deliberate and malicious attempt to sensationalise fake news. In a statement, the ministry said the article lacked primary research and made misleading assertions. The article referred to was published recently in the peer-reviewed journal JAMA Network Open. The study claimed the prevalence of "zero-food children" in India was at 19.3 per cent and drew attention to extreme food deprivation among children. It also ranked India as having the third-highest percentage of "zero-food children", after only Guinea (21.8 per cent) and Mali (20.5 per cent). In terms of numbers, the report claimed, India has the highest number of "zero-food children" at more than six million. Zero-food children is a term used to refer to children between six and 23 months old who did not consume any milk, formula or food in the last 24 hours. However, the ...

Wheat inventories hit 7-year low at 9.7 MT after record state sale

Wheat reserves in state stores totalled 9.7 million tons at the start of this month, down from 11.7 million tons in March 2022, the state-run Food Corporation of India said

93 hospitalised in twin food poisoning cases in Noida, Greater Noida

As many as 93 people, including 17 in Noida and 76 in Greater Noida, were hospitalised due to suspected food poisoning in two separate incidents after consuming special meals for fast made of 'kuttu ka atta' on Mahashivratri, officials on Saturday said. The 17 people, who fell ill in Noida, included men and women residents of Barola village who are admitted to the district hospital in Sector 30 while the 76 people in Greater Noida are students of different colleges living in a private hostel and have been admitted to different hospitals in the area, they said. The students, who are enrolled at different colleges and lived in a private hostel, had dinner on Friday after which many of them complained of uneasiness, dizziness and vomiting, police said. The students were staying at Aryan Residency in the Knowledge Park area -- an educational hub -- and had 'puris' made of 'kuttu ka atta' (buckwheat flour) on account of Mahashivratri on Friday. "The local police are seized of the incide

Govt to take all measures to contain prices of essential food items: Goyal

The Centre will pull all stops to ensure prices of essential food items from onion to tomatoes to pulses do not spike particularly during the elections, Union Minister Piyush Goyal said as he cited the Modi government's track record of controlling rates within days of any temporary hike. In an interview with PTI, Goyal, who is heading the food and consumer affairs ministry, asserted that the Modi government would continue to take measures to ensure that there is no stress on the household budget of "our Nari-Shakti". Replying to a query regarding the government's strategy to ensure that there are no spikes in prices of food items when the general election kicks in, the minister said, "We are going to be on top of it. And I can assure the people of India that this government cares for the women of India." He highlighted that the government has spent in the last few years about Rs 28,000 crore to the price stabilisation fund to support the effort to fight against food inflation. "We

Dal with 24-carat gold dust: Video goes viral at Ranveer Brar's restaurant

A video of Dal with a 24-carat gold tadka goes viral on Instagram from Celebrity chef Ranveer Brar's Dubai-based restaurant, 'Kashkan'

Food weighting in CPI may be cut as spending shifts, says official

Food's weighting in the consumer price index could be lowered in the next revision of the basket of goods due to be completed by next year, the official who declined to be identified told Reuters

Domino's Pizza loyalty program revamp, tie-up with Uber Eats drive up sales

Shares of the company were up nearly 6% in premarket trade, as it also raised its quarterly dividend by 25% to $1.51 per share and announced an additional $1 billion share buyback plan

National Pistachio Day: 5 reasons why eating Pistachios is healthy

The purpose of Pistachio Day is to raise awareness about the health advantages provided by the Pistachios. Individuals across the globe every year on February 26 mark National Pistachio Day

No impact of MSP turmoil on wheat buying: Food secy Sanjeev Chopra

The wheat procurement season usually starts from April 1 in most parts of the country but in the coming season the government has given freedom to the states to advance the purchase dates

Amul's golden jubilee: Modi calls for making it biggest dairy firm globally

A co-operative which started in FY1973-74, already saw its revenue at Rs 72,000 crore in FY23 and exports its products to more than 50 countries

Jubilant Foods expects Rs 1,000 crore in sales from Popeyes, says CEO

QSR chain operator Jubilant Foods Ltd (JFL) expects its fried chicken brand Popeyes to cross Rs 1,000 crore in sales in the next 3-4 years, its CEO and MD Sameer Khetarpal said on Wednesday. Besides, JFL, which is also a master franchisor of Domino's, is expanding its reach and is expected to have around 3,000 outlets in the medium term. The company is going to "rapidly expand across" its QSR brands, with a key focus on Domino's as India is a "very rapidly expanding market" with more discretionary income, and urbanisation led by its growing economy. When asked about its latest addition Popeyes, Khetarpal said: "We have got an outstanding response from Popeyes as a brand here." JFL, which opened its first store in Delhi on Wednesday and its 33rd store pan-India, has plans to add four more stores in the national capital region next week. "We are rapidly expanding and Popeyes will be the fastest QSR chain to get Rs 1,000 crore in sales," Khetarpal told PTI. Typically, a QSR chain ta

200 fall ill after consuming 'prasad' at religious event, condition stable

In a case of suspected food poisoning, around 200 people fell ill after consuming 'prasad' during a religious programme at Lonar in Maharashtra's Buldhana district, officials said on Wednesday. The incident took place on Tuesday night during the 'Harinam Saptah', a week-long religious event, at Somthana village in Lonar taluka, Buldhana district collector Kiran Patil told PTI. "Around 200 villagers complained of nausea and vomiting after consuming prasad during the function. While 142 of them were admitted to the rural hospital at Bibi, 20 others in Lonar and 35 patients to a facility in Mehkar," he said. The condition of all the patients was stable and most of them were discharged on Wednesday, Patil added. A team of doctors has been deployed in the village with an ambulance and other necessary equipment in case a medical emergency arises, he said. "Samples of prasad have been sent to a laboratory for analysis and an inquiry will be initiated," the collector said.

Tastes2plate to raise Rs 30-40 cr to fuel growth in intercity food delivery

Kolkata-based intercity cooked food delivery startup, tastes2plate.com, is close to raising Rs 30-40 crore in Series A venture funding, aiming at unlocking exponential growth in the online food delivery market, which holds the potential to reach USD 3-5 billion within the next few years, an official said. Led by IT professional Gyan Srivastava, the bootstrapped startup took over three years to stabilize its business model through extensive innovation in packaging and logistics. This allowed the company to become the lowest-cost player in the industry, he said. "We are very close to raising Rs 30-40 crore in Series A funding," said Srivastava, CEO of tastes2plate (T2P) owned by Charabuni Services. The funds will be primarily used for capacity building in marketing, information technology, and logistics infrastructure, he said. "The funding will help us achieve 30-40 per cent month-on-month growth in the number of deliveries compared to our current volume. "While the total online f

Who rules the rooster: Moti Mahal and Daryaganj Hospitality in legal battle

Moti Mahal or Daryaganj Hospitality? The two restaurants walk on eggshells as the Delhi High Court hears the butter chicken invention case to decide what came first