The Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) has halted the sale of 40,500 kg of mawa worth an estimated ₹60.75 lakh after finding stock without batch numbers and expiry dates at a cold storage facility in Gomtipur ahead of Diwali.
During an inspection, the AMC Health and Food Department found around 1.02 lakh kg of mawa stored by nearly 60 vendors. About 80% of the total stock belonged to 15 major traders.
The largest stock was linked to Radhika Food Products, which had stored 1,380 bags under the brands Rajwadi Sweet (Bajrangi) and Indian Dessert (Nilkanth). The department stopped the sale of 40,500 kg of mawa due to the absence of batch numbers and expiry dates.
The department collected six samples under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, from Hasmukhbhai Mavawala, Tulsi Mava Centre, Rajwadi Sweet, Indian Dessert, Purohit Mavawala and S.K. Mavawala.
These samples have been sent to the Public Health Laboratory for testing. Samples from other vendors will also be collected.
The AMC also cautioned sweet makers against using ready-made barfi or other sweets as substitutes for mawa while preparing peda and other sweets to reduce costs.
Mawa is produced by partially removing water from milk, whereas ready-made sweets contain sugar and other ingredients.
The civic body said inspections and sample collection would continue to ensure food safety during the festive season.