Chinese apple chips worth Rs 25 lakh seized

By G Saravanan

Published in The New Indian Express, Chennai, on August 8, 2010:

CHENNAI: City Corporation official

s on Saturday seized more than 8,000 kg of unsafe and expired food products (apple and carrot chips) imported from China worth Rs 25 lakh from two godowns at Kilpauk and Purasaiwalkam.

According to sources, though the carton boxes carried labels that the packets were manufactured at Qingdao Walk Foods Limited, China, individual 20-gram packets with a brand name of ‘Byocrips’ non-oily apple crisps’ had Chennai (Purasaiwalkam) address as manufacturers and marketers.

Furthermore, enquiry conducted by the civic body’s health department officials with the person who maintained the godowns revealed that no such manufacturing unit existed at the given address and it was, in fact, a residential area (Vellala Street in Purasaiwalkam).

Speaking to Express, one the officials involved in the operation said the raid was conducted after getting a tip off from locals that there was an illegal storage of food products.

“Based on input, we raided both the godowns and a detailed examination revealed that the food products that were imported under the guise of ‘eatables’ from China were already expired and started emanating bad odour,” said the official.

Further inquiry revealed that the chips packets were imported via the Chennai Port last year in different containers under misdeclaration and stored at these godowns for retail sales.

Interestingly, the team of Corporation officials who raided the godowns was able to get the full quantity of expired products, hence scuttling any chance of it making its way to shops.

The expired eatables would be destroyed at the civic body’s dump yards after getting the necessary orders from the Corporation top officials, sources said.