The Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation’s food department has sealed an unlicensed tomato sauce production unit on the Danilimda–Pirana Road and seized about 2,000 kg of raw material and prepared sauce, following a raid in the Behrampura ward. The municipal team said the unit was operating in unhygienic conditions and supplying sauce to shops for use in sandwiches and burgers.
According to food department officer Dr Tejas Shah, the unit was inspected after officials found that tomato sauce was being produced at an estate premises in the Behrampura area without a valid licence. The operator allegedly had a licence associated with another address, but the address provided for that licence was incorrect, the official said.
The department said the premises were being used to manufacture and sell sauce under the name “Touch Up”. During the inspection, officials found potato powder, acidic colouring substances and other materials being used in the production process. Dr Shah said excessive colouring was also found in the sauce-making process.
The inspection team reportedly found the production area in highly unhygienic conditions. The municipal department also sought quantity-related bills for the stock, but these documents were not produced at the site, according to the report. Officials said both raw materials and finished sauce were found inside the unit.
The seized stock was estimated at about 2,000 kg. The food department said the sauce was being distributed to different shops, where it was used as an accompaniment or ingredient in snacks including sandwiches and burgers. The report did not identify the shops supplied by the unit or specify how long the production activity had been operating.
The action places the focus on the role of municipal food-safety enforcement beyond restaurants and retail outlets. Production units supplying commonly used food products can operate within industrial or estate premises while remaining part of an urban consumption chain that extends across neighbourhood shops and eateries. In this case, the civic inspection identified licensing, documentation, ingredient-use and hygiene-related concerns at the production stage.
The Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation has sealed the unit and seized the material found on the premises. The food department said the seized stock would be taken through a destruction process. The report did not provide details of any laboratory testing, prosecution or penalty proceedings against the operator. The next formal action is therefore expected to involve disposal of the seized material and further proceedings by the municipal food department.
