FSSAI officials shut Kovai hotel for selling rotten shawarma

COIMBATORE: Officials of the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) on Sunday ordered closure of a shop that sold shawarma with rotten chicken stuffing in Coimbatore.

Officials said Andrews (28) from Annur bought shawarma online from a shop located opposite Annur Government Hospital.

“As soon as he began to eat, Andrews developed an allergy with bouts of vomiting and began to feel dizzy. He then discovered a rotten smell from the meat stuffed inside the shawarma,” said an official.

Thereafter, Andrews accompanied by some of his friends visited the shop and questioned the staff for selling rotten food. However, the staff failed to respond properly and some other customers inside the shop too joined in the intense argument.

This incident, captured on the mobile phone of a public and circulated on social media prompted the FSSAI officials to carry out a raid on Sunday. During an inspection, the FSSAI officials found the shop using expired masala products to prepare food items in an unhygienic manner. The shop was ordered to be closed immediately.

Also, the FSSAI officials checked food items being sold in other eateries in Annur neighbourhood and informed the shop keepers to ensure quality to avoid action.

It was just recently, the FSSAI department cracked down on hotels selling shawarma across Tamil Nadu following the death of a minor girl in Kerala as she died of food poisoning after consuming shawarma.