Home Education Current Affairs Kanpur Raid: UP FSDA Busts 10,000 Kg Expired Dates Racket, Use‑By Date...

Kanpur Raid: UP FSDA Busts 10,000 Kg Expired Dates Racket, Use‑By Date Lapsed in 2022–23

Uttar Pradesh’s Food Safety and Drug Administration (FSDA) has seized nearly 10,000 kg of allegedly expired dates from a godown in Kanpur, exposing a suspected attempt to push long-expired stock back into the market ahead of Ramzan and Holi. Officials say the consignment, valued at around ₹50 lakh, carried use‑by dates from 2022 and 2023 and was being relabelled to appear fresh.^[1]^[2]^[3]^[4]^[5]

Massive seizure in Kanpur

According to officials, FSDA teams raided the premises of a wholesale trader in Kanpur and found around 10,000 kg of packed dates stored in a godown. Initial examination revealed that the original use‑by dates on the packets had lapsed in 2022 and 2023, yet the stock was still being preserved instead of being destroyed as required under food safety norms.^[2]^[3]^[4]^[1]

The estimated market value of the seized consignment is close to ₹50 lakh, underlining the scale of the alleged illegal operation. Officials have sent multiple samples of the seized dates to a laboratory for detailed analysis to determine their safety and quality.^[4]^[6]^[1]

Alleged relabelling and attempt to resell

Investigators have indicated that the trader was allegedly preparing to re‑introduce the expired dates into the market during the seasonal surge in demand around Ramzan and Holi. Reports suggest that fake labels and stickers showing extended or fresh expiry dates, reportedly up to 2026 in some cases, were being used to disguise the fact that the original use‑by period had already ended in 2022–23.^[3]^[5]^[1]^[2]^[4]

Authorities suspect that the consignment was being deliberately held back to be dumped into the supply chain when demand for dates peaks, especially among consumers observing fasting during Ramzan and purchasing dry fruits and sweets for Holi. Officials have described the case as a serious attempt to compromise public health for profit by misbranding and selling unsafe food.^[1]^[2]^[3]^[4]

Wider crackdown on unsafe food

The seizure in Kanpur is part of a wider enforcement drive by the Uttar Pradesh FSDA against adulterated, substandard and expired food items ahead of the festive season. In the same series of operations in Kanpur, officials also recovered around 675 kg of adulterated khoya and a consignment of adulterated supari, all of which were ordered to be destroyed.^[7]^[8]^[6]^[4]^[1]

Parallel drives in Lucknow have led to the seizure and destruction of large quantities of unsafe food, including over 1,300 kg of expired dates and more than 1,400 kg of coloured kachri, along with other food items valued at over ₹41 lakh. FSDA and FSSAI teams have also seized over 13,000 litres of adulterated edible oil and other spurious products in separate raids in the state.^[9]^[8]^[10]^[11]^[7]

Public health risks and consumer impact

Food safety officers have warned that consumption of dates that have crossed their use‑by date by several years can pose serious health risks, including food poisoning and other gastrointestinal illnesses, particularly when storage conditions are unknown or poor. They have underlined that dry fruits and dairy‑based festive items are especially vulnerable to spoilage and adulteration, making strict vigilance essential during high‑demand periods.^[2]^[7]^[9]^[4]^[1]

Officials say such rackets exploit the trust of consumers who rely on packaging and labelling, and that tampering with expiry dates directly undermines the safeguards that the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 seeks to provide. The episode has once again highlighted how unscrupulous traders attempt to monetise expired and unsafe stock instead of disposing of it in compliance with legal and regulatory requirements.^[10]^[6]^[12]^[9]^[4]^[1]^[2]

Legal consequences and ongoing probe

FSDA officers have stated that legal action will be initiated against the trader and others involved once the laboratory reports on the seized samples are received. Proceedings are expected under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, which provides for penalties and prosecution in cases involving misbranding, sale of unsafe food and misleading labelling.^[6]^[12]^[9]^[4]^[10]^[1]^[2]

For now, the entire consignment of allegedly expired dates has been secured and is slated for destruction in accordance with prescribed procedures, subject to completion of the formalities. Officials have also indicated that they are examining the supply chain links of the seized stock to identify upstream suppliers and downstream buyers, with the possibility of more raids if further irregularities emerge.^[8]^[4]^[6]^[1]^[2]

FSDA’s appeal to citizens

The Uttar Pradesh FSDA has appealed to consumers to carefully check manufacturing dates, use‑by dates and packaging integrity while purchasing dates, sweets, dairy products and other festive food items. Authorities have urged people to immediately inform the department if they come across suspiciously cheap offers, repacked goods, tampered labels or visibly spoiled products so that swift enforcement action can be taken.^[13]^[14]^[9]^[4]^[10]^[1]

Officials have also stressed that this campaign against adulteration and expired stock will continue in the coming days, with surprise inspections of godowns, cold storages, dairies and retail outlets across Uttar Pradesh to deter similar attempts to endanger public health for financial gain.^[11]^[7]^[8]^[4]^[1]