LAHORE: The Punjab Food Authority (PFA) has decided to make food adulteration and forgery non-bailable offences acrossthe province.

Preparations are underway to make legislation proposing up to five-year imprisonment and a fine reaching Rs10 million, says PFA Director General Muhammad Asim Javaid during a press briefing held at the PFA Headquarters.

He stated that with the enforcement of the proposed law, eliminating the menace of food adulteration would becomepractically achievable. He added that enforcement actions had increased by 158 per cent and the number of registered cases rose by 24pc compared to previous years.

The DG said a total of 1,235,741 food points were inspected, resulting in 1,344 FIRs. Over 119,000 violators were fined a collective amount of Rs1.52 billion and 3,300 units were sealed during operations across province during a year. PFA also discarded 686,000 kilograms of meat, 142,000 litres of oil and 117,000 litres of substandard drinks.

He stated that a record increase was seen in milk checking activities while1.624 million litres of substandard milk were discarded. He noted that 75pc of the milk available in Punjab now meets safety standards and the amount of milk disposal has decreased four times compared to previous years.

He further stated that medical screenings were conducted for food handlers at 2,942 food carts, mobile trucks and roadside stalls. Under School Nutrition Programme, 10,786 students received free lunch boxes for two months. A plan has been devised to extend the programme to 50 additional schools, while the Eat Safe campaign is being accelerated across the province.

He said several new initiatives havebeen launched, including the Eat Safe Women and Kids Campaigns, an Electronic Learning Management System, Milk Traceability Programme, Meat Safety Task Force, a Paperless Inspection System and a Business Facilitation Centre to support and streamline the compliance process for food businesses.

DG Asim Javaid emphasised that the authority is taking all possible measures to ensure the availability of safe and quality food in line with the vision of Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz.

He has requested the public to cooperate with the PFA and report any violations through its 1223 helpline.