JEDDAH, 19 June — Commerce Ministry officials have impounded large quantities of food items suspected of containing cancer-causing ingredients from a warehouse in Jeddah recently.
Officials said a particular brand of biscuits distributed to retail outlets contained a colorant called 124E which causes cancer. Some shopkeepers have been so indifferent to people’s health that they even concealed the name of the harmful ingredient written on the wrappings with black paint.
On receiving a tip-off, Muhammad Al-Harbie, director general of the Commerce Ministry’s Jeddah branch, ordered a probe.
Investigators found that there were several varieties of biscuits and candies stored at a place which did not meet the specifications for a warehouse.
They seized 802 cartons of the biscuits suspected of containing the carcinogenic substance. They also confiscated 2,648 cartons of candies and biscuits stored in an unhygienic manner. The owner of the warehouse is being questioned, Al-Harbie said.
In another development, city officials discovered that 250 kilograms of cooked meat served to diners at a well-frequented restaurant on Sitteen Street were unfit for human consumption.
“The restaurant owner was fined SR5,000, and was warned against repeating the offense,” said Adil Feda, director of markets management at Jeddah Municipality.
The regulations of home-delivery services include supplying food at the appointed time, proper covering and protection of the food until the time of delivery to the customer, specifying the time of dispatch in the bill, etc.
The municipality has instructed its officials to regularly monitor the activities of the home-delivery services, a source at the municipality said.
