Karnataka FDA crackdown: Expired rava, baking powder, stale bread found at Apollo Hospital canteen

For patients, attendants and staff expecting safe food inside a hospital, an inspection at the canteen of Apollo Hospital on Bannerghatta Road raised concerns after Karnataka Health Department officials found several food safety violations, including expired ingredients, stale bread and misbranded food products.

The inspection was carried out as part of a wider crackdown on food establishments across Bengaluru. Officials said expired raw materials, including rava, icing sugar, maida and bakery products, were found in the hospital canteen kitchen. They also seized four packets of mixture and nine packets of pani puri that had crossed their shelf life.

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What inspectors found

The inspection team also found stale bread and identified the use of two plastic chopping boards. Officials flagged these as non-compliant under food safety norms because of the risk of bacterial contamination.

They further reported several misbranded food items at the canteen, including nine packets of pani puri, five packets of meethi leaves, six 30-kg packets of fried gram, one 30-kg packet of green peas and five 30-kg packets of moong dal.

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Part of a three-day enforcement drive

The inspection formed part of a three-day special enforcement drive conducted by the Food Safety Division of Karnataka's Food Safety and Drug Administration Department under the guidance of Health and Family Welfare Minister UT Khader. Held from August 7 to August 9, the drive covered 60 three-star and five-star hotels across Bengaluru Urban district and the Greater Bengaluru Area, with 77 food samples collected for laboratory analysis.

During the inspections, officials found multiple violations across establishments, including storage of expired food products, non-compliant labelling, improper storage of meat and poultry, unhygienic food preparation areas, fungal growth in vegetables, use of banned artificial colours, failure of prescribed food safety practices in storage and handling, and inadequate segregation of vegetarian and non-vegetarian food items. The department said notices had been issued to establishments found violating norms and legal action had been recommended before the competent adjudicating authorities.

Statewide seizures

During the drive, authorities said they seized 640 kg of mislabelled cereals and other food products, 276 kg of rotten vegetables, 45 litres of expired milk and curd, 12 kg of expired bakery items, 67 kg of mislabelled or expired food products and 49 litres of used cooking oil. In related checks, officials also served notice on a McDonald's outlet on Brigade Road after it was allegedly found using banned Magnesium Sulfite to treat frying oil, while Hotel Skyye and Pegs and Bottles on Church Street were sealed for allegedly storing expired food items.

The department said inspections would continue in Bengaluru and other parts of Karnataka to enforce food safety standards and ensure consumers are served safe and hygienic food.