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Maharashtra FDA suspends 29 food business licences
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Thursday, 22 October, 2026, 08 : 00 AM [IST]
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Shardul Nautiyal, Mumbai
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The Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has intensified its statewide enforcement drive against suspected substandard, adulterated, misbranded and unsafe food products, suspending the licences of 25 hotels, restaurants, bakeries, canteens and other food establishments, along with four edible oil and spice manufacturing units.
The department has seized approximately 81,330 kg of suspected non-compliant food stock valued at Rs 1.73 crore from 37 establishments across Mumbai, Konkan, Pune, Nashik, Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar and Nagpur divisions. In a separate drive against banned food products, the FDA has seized stock worth Rs 18.83 lakh and two vehicles, registered 10 FIRs against 10 accused and sealed four establishments.
The enforcement action aims to prevent the sale and distribution of food products that may pose risks to consumers, strengthen compliance with food safety regulations and ensure that food businesses maintain prescribed standards of hygiene, manufacturing, storage, packaging and labelling.
Maharashtra FDA Commissioner Tukaram Mundhe said the department was undertaking inspections and enforcement measures across the state to identify violations and protect public health. The action covers food service establishments as well as manufacturers, repackers, wholesalers and distributors handling products such as edible oils, spices, dry fruits, tea powder, sweets, sabudana, bhagar, rajgira and other food articles.
The department has also warned that legal proceedings will follow the laboratory examination of seized samples wherever violations are established under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006.
Licences suspended over hygiene violations
The FDA suspended the licences of 25 food establishments after inspections revealed serious violations of Schedule 4 of the Food Safety and Standards (Licensing and Registration of Food Businesses) Regulations, 2011, which prescribes hygiene and sanitary requirements for food businesses.
In Mumbai division, licences of seven establishments were suspended, including Mumbai Bites in Girgaon, Sophia College Canteen on Bhulabhai Desai Road, Avenue E-Commerce Ltd. in Sion, Janata Bakery in Jogeshwari East, PSN Supply Chain Solutions Pvt. Ltd., Sodexo India Services Pvt. Ltd. at Fortis Hospital in Mulund and Arihant Aahar (Onyx) in Ghatkopar East.
An inspection of the Sodexo kitchen at Fortis Hospital, where meals were being prepared for patients, revealed cockroaches, food waste in the drainage system, fungus-infested food transport containers and rusted knives. At Arihant Aahar, the inspection followed a complaint alleging the use of unauthorised artificial food colours in sweets. Janata Bakery secured only 28 out of 88 marks, or 32 per cent, during inspection.
The FDA also issued a closure notice to Manmandir Sweets in Kaju Pada, Borivali East, after finding that sweets were being manufactured at a location different from the address on its registration certificate. The inspection reportedly revealed fly infestation, unclean utensils, the absence of medical certificates for workers and staff residing at the manufacturing premises.
In Konkan division, the licences of Belly Laughs Bistro and Tap and Anthony's Cafe and Bakery in Thane were suspended.
Pune division accounted for eight suspensions, including six outlets of Jubilant FoodWorks Ltd.'s Domino's Pizza in Pune and Kolhapur, Special Tupatil Sabudana Vade on Jangli Maharaj Road and Yasin Food Centre in Wagholi. Inspections identified live cockroaches and their remains, foul odour from a toilet adjoining the dining area, incomplete temperature records and inadequate segregation of vegetarian and non-vegetarian materials.
Another eight establishments in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar division were affected. These included two Domino's Pizza outlets in Jalna and Parbhani, The Maple Lawn and Restaurant in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, Heritage Foods Ltd. in Hingoli district, Datta Dairy in Aundha Nagnath taluka, Arfa Traders, Bushra Agency and Gurukrupa Kirana. The suspensions followed deficiencies identified during inspections and violations of prescribed hygiene requirements.
Edible oil and spice units face action
In Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar division, the FDA seized 37,251 kg of food stock valued at Rs 48.40 lakh in a series of operations and suspended the licences of four manufacturing or processing units.
At Pol Agro Industries in Lasur Station, Gangapur taluka, officials seized 9,165 kg of refined soybean oil sold under the Soneri and Ruperi brands, valued at Rs 15.02 lakh, on October 15. The unit secured only 19 out of 86 marks, or 23 per cent, during inspection. The absence of a laboratory test report, technical personnel, pest-control arrangements and a food-grade packaging certificate led to the suspension of its licence with immediate effect.
Acting on confidential information received from the Mumbai Vigilance Division, officials raided Anand Food Product, Janta Industries and Shri Ganesh Mirchi Kandap Kendra in Dharmabad, Nanded district. A total of 25,768 kg of chilli powder, turmeric powder and edible salt reportedly used for adulteration, valued at Rs 28.98 lakh, was seized, and the licences of all three units were suspended.
Other seizures in the division included 1,978.4 kg of refined soybean oil worth Rs 3.17 lakh from Mahesh Trading Company in Udgir, 202 kg of groundnut and safflower oil worth Rs 80,100 from Anviti Foods Pvt. Ltd. in Jalna district, and 138 kg of cold-pressed sunflower and safflower oil worth Rs 42,880 from MDP Oil Industries in Latur district. These products were seized on suspicion of adulteration, poor quality or unhygienic packing.
Seizures across Nagpur, Konkan and Nashik
In Nagpur division, the FDA seized food stock worth approximately Rs 45.75 lakh, including 6,178 kg of roasted supari valued at Rs 23.17 lakh from a godown in Shirpur, Kamptee taluka. At Decor Masale in Bazargaon, officials seized 5,077 kg of chilli, turmeric and coriander powders, flour and tea powder worth Rs 19.31 lakh on suspicion of substandard or unsafe quality.
At Shifa Doodh Dairy in Gondia, 815 kg of kunda and 5 kg of rasgulla valued at Rs 3.27 lakh were seized after fungus was found on kunda stored with other food products in a cold-storage facility.
In Konkan division, seizures included 1,904 kg of walnuts, figs, black raisins and salted pistachios worth Rs 22.97 lakh from GT India Pvt. Ltd. at the APMC Market in Vashi, Navi Mumbai, over suspected labelling violations and substandard quality. The FDA also seized 806 kg of broken cashews worth Rs 6.37 lakh from Vidhya Sweets in Vasai East, Palghar district. Refined soybean and mustard oil worth Rs 1.64 lakh were destroyed at GPS Oil Industries in Thane over suspected substandard quality. Further action involved farsan products seized from Natraj Namkeen in Mahape and mustard oil seized from Jalaram Traders in Raigad district.
In Nashik division, the FDA seized tea powder, edible oils, sweets and bakery products worth approximately Rs 10.64 lakh. The seizures included 1,680 kg of Parisar Gold tea powder worth Rs 6.26 lakh from Pushpa Marketing Company in Jalgaon; 554.7 kg of filtered groundnut oil worth Rs 1.50 lakh from a trader in Nashik district; and bakery products and sweets suspected of containing excess food colours, having labelling defects or being manufactured under unhygienic conditions.
Festive food products under scrutiny
The FDA also intensified checks on products commonly consumed during religious fasting and the festive season. In Pune division, officials seized stocks of sabudana, bhagar, rajgira, groundnuts, edible oils, wafers, chivda and other products from establishments in Pune, Satara, Sangli and Kolhapur.
The action covered Bhansali Udyog, Bhansali Trading Company, RS Foods, Jaylaxmi Snacks, Pooja Sales Corporation, Parmar Foods, Deva Oil Depot, Powerpec Cold Pressed Edible Oil, Uttam Trading Company, Khandelwal Food Products, Rajesh Enterprises, Yashraj Food Processing and a Jumboking outlet operated by Neighborhood Net LLP. The seized products were suspected of being substandard or unsafe, or of having labelling and misbranding violations.
In Mumbai, the FDA seized 130 kg of potato and banana wafers, garlic shev, sing bhujia and Schezwan sticks worth Rs 22,045 from Shree Sadguru Foods on October 15. A day earlier, 3 kg of jalebi and Maharaja halwa worth Rs 3,150 was destroyed at Shri Ganesh Farsan and Sweet Mart after food colour was found during inspection.
The FDA said samples of seized food articles had been sent to laboratories for analysis. Further legal action will be initiated under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, based on the findings and the violations established.
Separate drive against banned food products
In a parallel statewide operation conducted on October 14 and 15, the FDA inspected 13 establishments and vehicles across Mumbai, Pune, Konkan and Nagpur divisions to prevent the sale, storage and transportation of banned food products.
The department seized banned stock worth Rs 18,83,378 and two vehicles. Ten FIRs were registered against 10 accused, and four establishments were sealed.
In Mumbai, officials seized banned stock worth Rs 7 lakh and a vehicle valued at approximately Rs 3 lakh from a Tata pickup in an operation under MIDC Police Station, while another operation involving a Mahindra Bolero pickup resulted in the seizure of stock worth Rs 4.44 lakh under Dahisar Police Station. Offences were registered under relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006.
In Pune division, the FDA seized banned stock worth Rs 5.15 lakh during inspections of six establishments, registered six FIRs, arrested six persons and sealed three establishments. In Konkan division, stock worth Rs 2.03 lakh was seized, with one FIR, one arrest and one establishment sealed. Nagpur division reported the seizure of banned products worth Rs 21,030, followed by one FIR and one arrest.
The statewide drive reflects the department's focus on enforcing food safety standards throughout the supply chain, from manufacturing and storage to retail sale and food preparation, with further action dependent on inspection findings and laboratory reports.
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