Beer worth Rs 42 lakh comes under scrutiny in Kolhapur

PUNE/KOLHAPUR: Food and Drug Administration (FDA) officials seized beer bottles worth Rs 41.17 lakh from a wine shop in Kolhapur late on Thursday night after spotting “suspended particles” in a particular brand of the alcoholic beverage.
The officials seized the entire consignment, drew samples and sent them to the designated lab for analysis.
M S Kembalkar, assistant commissioner (food), FDA, Kolhapur, said, “We received an anonymous complaint on November 1 following which we conducted raids on a beer and wine shop located at Shiroli Pulachi in Hatkanangle taluka on Thursday night.We have seized beer bottles worth Rs 41,17,420.”
"Of the bottles seized, 18,454 are of 650 ml and priced at Rs 160 each. The remaining 12,942 bottles are of 330 ml and priced at Rs 90 each," he said.
"We have sent samples from two bottles to the laboratory for testing. Once we receive the report from the laboratory, we will take action against the shop owner as per the law," he said.
"All the bottles have different batch numbers and been manufactured on different dates," he said.
"We appeal to people to come forward and register complaints with us if they find anything mixed in beer bottles of similar type. We will initiate action against the concerned authorities," he said.
Food safety officer (FSO) Vijay Unawane and sampling assistant Pravin Kamble participated in the raid.