Kashmir’s beloved non-veg platter has come under the scanner, with authorities declaring more and more items unsafe for consumption and discarding them over the past week.
Food Safety authorities have seized 1,000 kg of unfit meat, along with 150 kg of Goshtabas and 2,500 kebabs. The intensified crackdown—particularly on meat brought in from outside J&K—has rattled food business operators (FBOs) and triggered large-scale illegal dumping of meat and meat products.
Commissioner Food Safety, Drug and Food Control Organisation, Smita Sethi, said that on Thursday alone, around 1,000 kg of meat were found dumped in Kakapora (Pulwama) and Khanday Colony (Srinagar).
She added that due to the ongoing action against meat storage facilities, as well as suppliers and distributors, many defaulting FBOs have resorted to illegally disposing of substandard meat that was being supplied to various food outlets in Kashmir.
The crackdown hasn’t just targeted raw meat—prepared food items have also been found unsafe. Officials recovered 2,500 kebabs from the Safa Kadal and Parimpora areas of Srinagar. These kebabs, prepared using frozen meat, contained non-permitted food colours such as Carmisine, Tartrazine, and Erythrosine—chemicals known to cause serious health issues.
In addition, 150 kg of Goshtabas were seized during multiple raids.
Teams from the Food Wing of the D&FCO have been conducting intensified inspections of the meat supply chain in Kashmir, checking both raw meat and prepared meat products being sold in the market.
Earlier this week, a referral lab in Ghaziabad found unsafe and harmful colours in snacks sampled from Kashmir’s markets.
An official warned that unapproved food colours pose a hidden, long-term threat and could be linked to various diseases in the region. “People must move away from their obsession with brightly coloured food. Natural food colour should be preferred, and only such food should be consumed,” he said. (Agencies)
