Ahmedabad municipal officials seized 10,000 kg of suspected adulterated sauce from a unit in Gota after a food safety inspection found that the product was being made without tomatoes and instead used papaya pulp, potato pulp and synthetic colour, according to Sandesh’s report. The action was taken during the third day of an ongoing inspection drive by the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation’s health department.
The raid was conducted at the Aai Shree Khodiyar unit in Gota. During the inspection, the municipal health team reportedly found that tomatoes were not being used in the sauce production process. Instead, papaya and potato pulp were being used extensively. Officials also found the addition of synthetic colour, which the report described as prohibited.
The entire stock found at the premises was seized and the unit was sealed, according to the report. Municipal officials collected multiple samples of the sauce and sent them to a laboratory for analysis. The laboratory results will determine the precise ingredients and substances present in the seized products.
Further legal action will be taken after the laboratory report is received, the report said. The samples are expected to establish whether the products violated food safety requirements and the extent of the alleged adulteration. Until the laboratory findings are available, the suspected violations remain subject to official testing and due process.
The inspection has also raised questions about repeat enforcement at the same premises. The municipal corporation had reportedly raided the unit about two months earlier, when officials found heavy uncleanliness in the production area. The health department had initiated action at that time under applicable rules, but the unit allegedly continued producing adulterated sauce.
The latest seizure illustrates the operational challenge faced by municipal food safety departments: identifying unsafe production practices, securing evidence and sustaining enforcement after an earlier inspection. In this case, the municipal team has moved from inspection to seizure and sealing, while the laboratory process will determine the next legal step.
The Ahmedabad municipal health department’s immediate next steps are the analysis of the collected samples and action based on the laboratory findings. The seized stock will remain under official control while the testing and subsequent proceedings are completed.
