“…the FSSAI (Food Safety and Standards Authority of India) team noted that 90 packets of button mushrooms had incorrect packaging date – these were already identified by our warehouse team and were rejected during an inward QC (quality control) check,” Goyal wrote in a post on microblogging platform X (formerly Twitter) on Monday.
“This is not usual, and was due to a manual typing error on the vendor’s side. Still, the concerned vendor has been delisted from our database. At Hyperpure, we have stringent inward guidelines and tech systems that helped our teams to identify this error in time,” he added. The product under question was of Pune-based agri-products company Manegrow.
“I am not sure why just these small number of mushroom packets worth Rs 7,200 (out of the crores of inventory in the warehouse), which were never going to make it to customers, are being talked about…,” Goyal wrote in his post.
Hyperpure is Zomato’s business-to-business (B2B) marketplace through which it sells groceries, fruits and vegetables to restaurants.
On October 29, Telangana food safety officials had conducted an inspection of a Hyperpure warehouse in the state. It highlighted several food safety concerns, including the premises being found open directly to the outside environment without a proper insect-proof screen, and the presence of houseflies inside the premises.
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The inspection found that 18 kg of mushroom packets were carrying a packaging date of October 30.”The recent food safety inspection at our Hyderabad warehouse resulted in the Hyperpure warehouse achieving an A+ rating, highest benchmark in their ranking,” Goyal said while highlighting that it is focused on ensuring that product quality is not compromised at any stage of the supply chain.
This is not the first time that Hyperpure has come under scrutiny. Last month, it faced backlash for listing analogue paneer — a cheaper alternative to the dairy product made from vegetable fats.