Nine tons of rotten and expired canned meats, vegetables and fruits were seized prior to their distribution by store and warehouse owners in Buraidah, Qassim Region recently, Al-Watan daily reported.

Earlier, Ahmad Al-Ghunim, a Saudi citizen, told the daily that he was aware that tons of rotten canned foods were intended to be transported from Riyadh to Buraidah to be stored in warehouses owned by one of the major companies. He immediately informed the concerned authorities at Qassim governorate, Al-Watan said.

Accordingly, the Al-Basr municipality, in western Buraidah, raided the warehouses and seized 5.4 tons of meat and poultry and 3.5 tons of expired canned vegetables and fruits.

Saleh Al-Dubaibi, lawyer and rights activist said that such violations do not only affect individuals but rather society as a whole. He emphasized that such cases called for severe penalties.

He said Al-Basr municipality should be held responsible for their negligence and called for a referral of the case to the investigation and prosecution authority.


In a related development, Al-Jouf municipality inspected a factory involved in manufacturing food without the required health specifications.

The factory laborers re-packed expired foods (olives, cheese and jam) and sold them to a supermarket which, in turn, sold them to customers. The laborers also used to wash food containers in the factory’s toilet while others worked as blacksmiths in one of the corners of the factory, local media said.

The factory was closed down and all the food items destroyed.