Hyderabad police seizes 36 tonnes adulterated ghee, raw material

The enforcement teams seized 36 tonnes of adulterated ghee, milk cream, palm oil, vanaspati, artificial ghee flavours, starch and chemical additives. Food safety officials also collected statutory samples for laboratory analysis.The inspections uncovered large-scale operations in which substandard ingredients and unauthorised chemical substances were being mixed to manufacture synthetic ghee, police said. (Photo: AI-generated)Hyderabad Police have seized 36 tonnes of adulterated ghee, raw materials and chemical additives in a major crackdown on illegal ghee manufacturing and trading units, officials said on Tuesday.Acting on intelligence inputs and public tip-offs, the Hyderabad Food Adulteration Surveillance Team (H-FAST), in coordination with the Food Safety Department, conducted simultaneous inspections at 130 establishments, including 39 ghee manufacturing units and 91 ghee-selling outlets, Hyderabad Police Commissioner V C Sajjanar said.The inspections uncovered large-scale operations in which substandard ingredients and unauthorised chemical substances were being mixed to manufacture synthetic ghee, Sajjanar said.The enforcement teams seized 36 tonnes of adulterated ghee, milk cream, palm oil, vanaspati, artificial ghee flavours, starch and chemical additives. Food safety officials also collected statutory samples for laboratory analysis. “This adulterated mixture was deceptively packaged, branded and distributed to unsuspecting consumers under the guise of ‘Pure Desi Ghee’, posing grave health risks to the public,” Sajjanar said.Police said manufacturers used non-milk ingredients including palm oil, vanaspati, skimmed milk powder, starch and artificial flavouring to replicate the taste, aroma and appearance of genuine ghee. Some products contained no dairy components at all. DCP (Task Force) Gaikwad Vaibhav Raghunath said the products were packed in transparent covers and sold under names such as “100 per cent pure ghee”, “premium ghee”, “farm fresh ghee” and “natural ghee”.The packs did not carry mandatory details such as batch or lot numbers, FSSAI licence information, Certificates of Analysis (COA), manufacturing and packing dates, or expiry dates, Gaikwad said.The adulteration level ranged from around 10% to 40%, with the products being diverted to different end-users based on the degree of adulteration. These included pooja ghee, restaurants and tiffin centres, sweet manufacturing units and Ayurvedic shops.The milk cream used in the manufacturing process was sourced from suppliers in Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu.Police said the adulterated ghee was manufactured at a low cost using cheaper substitute ingredients and sold in the market as original ghee at higher prices, generating substantial illegal profits.The products were distributed across Telangana and neighbouring states, posing a serious public health risk, police said. Cases were in the process of being registered against those involved.- EndsPublished By: India Today Web Desk Published On: Aug 18, 2026 16:48 IST