Food delivery services told to delist erring eateries

App-based food delivery services like Zomato, UberEats and Swiggy have started removing eateries which fail to maintain FSSAI regulations and those that are unlicenced. This follows an order from the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India.

This newspaper had reported on July 23 on the issue of delivery services supplying food from unhygienic outlets.

The directive was a result of multiple complaints from customers regarding the sub-standard quality of food. A probe launched by FSSAI showed that there were unlicensed restaurants listed by the food delivery platforms.

Asked about the issue, a spokesperson for Swiggy said the service had delisted hundreds of restaurants due to non-compliance with standards. “Over 75 per cent of restaurants listed on the platform are licenced. The remaining will be acquiring a licence soon through the FSSAI assist programme.” He said regular inspections were being conducted in collaboration with Equinox Labs, a food audit firm, to ensure that food is prepared in accordance to hygiene standards. “The results of the inspections will be posted along with FSSAI license numbers to a customer-viewable platform,” he said.

Uber Eats, which also claimed to have delisted unlicenced restaurants, said, “We are working closely with the authorities to help them achieve their objective of ensuring good quality and safe food”.

A Zomato spokesperson said food delivery partners had time till the end of the this month. “If they fail to furnish or apply for FSSAI licences within the stipulated period, we will delist them,” he said.

Explaining the process, Azhar from the Havmore chain of restaurants that is listed by the food delivery apps said, “We have to provide a copy of our license. In addition, inspections are conducted to ensure that clients like us are maintaining kitchens and quality services.”

An official of the food department said there was an increase in the number of applications for licence since July. “In July, 446 licenses were issued, followed by 599 in August. The number has gone up to 668 after the FSSAI directive.

At a recent summit, Mr Kumar Agarwal, chief executive officer of FSSAI said the review of the delisting process will start in the first week of October.

A PROBE launched by FSSAI showed that there were unlicensed restaurants listed by the food delivery platforms.

REGULAR INSPECTIONS were being conducted in collaboration with Equinox Labs, a food audit firm, to ensure that food is prepared in accordance to hygiene standards, a Swiggy spokesman said