Frozen Meat, Chicken Sold Without Cold Storage, Licenses In Kashmir

Srinagar: Jammu and Kashmir government’s recent crackdown on frozen meat traders reveals widespread non-compliance, with all inspected businesses found operating without licenses or proper cold storage facilities after rotten meat was discovered across the Valley. This discovery has prompted the Jammu and Kashmir’s Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to ban the unlabeled packaged food products.

Commissioner Food & Drugs Administration, J&K, Smita Sethi said that frozen meat and meat products must be stored and transported at -18°C or below at all stages, from production to sale. “Short-term chilled storage at 4°C is permissible only for a maximum of two to four days prior to consumption. Products stored at -18°C or lower must be consumed within twelve months from the date of freezing,” she said.

Under the Food Safety and Standards Act, frozen meat means that meat which has been previously chilled and then subjected to freezing in appropriate equipment so that the product attains a temperature of-18°C or lower to preserve the meat for long-term storage and transportation.

However, during the crackdown in Kashmir, officials of the food safety found that none of the traders had a cold storage facility, nor had they the required licence for operating the storages, a senior officer in the department told ETV Bharat. The traders were given licences for food vending and other retail but they were carrying out this import and transportation which needs cold storage chain from source up to the retailer, the officer said.

Sethi said all establishments must be equipped with calibrated temperature monitoring devices and must maintain accurate documentary and digital records for verification during inspections.

Hilal Ahmad Mir, Assistant Commissioner for the Food Safety Department in Kashmir, told ETV Bharat that they found two main traders in Srinagar who were indulging in this trade and their license has been suspended.

The traders-Sunshine Foods-run by Abdul Hameed Kuchay at SICOP Zakoora and Arif Ahmad Shah, a resident of Baghat Barzulla-were booked by the police under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), on the accusations of distributing rotten meat in Kashmir. “Sunshine Foods and Arif Shah were the main persons who imported this frozen meat and chicken from outside states and distributed it in the valley,” he said.

Mir said that the license of all the traders and distributors who were found selling and distributing this rotten meat and chicken has been suspended as of now and samples of meat, chicken and fish have been sent to two outside laboratories to check the source of the animal and its safety and quality standards.

A police official said that the investigation for exposing the traders who dumped the meat in public places after the crackdown is also underway.

Facing public outrage, the Food Safety Department has directed all Food Business Operators (FBOs), including manufacturers, processors, wholesalers, retailers, cold storage operators, transporters, and e-commerce platforms, to strictly comply with the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 and Packaging and Labeling Regulations, 2020 in relation to the sale of frozen raw meat, chicken, and related products.

Meanwhile, the Valley’s biggest trade body has demanded temporary suspension of imported frozen meat into Kashmir until robust traceability and cold-chain systems are established. “A fast-track investigation is essential to identify and punish the culprits, ensuring such lapses are never repeated. Transparency would help the public differentiate between defaulters and genuine businesses, protecting honest traders while safeguarding consumers.,” Kashmir Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) president Javid Ahmad Tenga said.

Read More:

1. Jammu Kashmir Bans Unlabelled Food After Rotten-Meat Scare
2. 5000 Kg And Counting: Rotten Meat Seizure In Kashmir Highlights Lack Of Monitoring At Source