The Food and Drugs Authority, FDA, has closed down 44 food manufacturing facilities across the country as part of a nationwide enforcement exercise aimed at ensuring compliance with food safety regulations.
The facilities, which include sachet water producers and cold stores, were shut following inspections that uncovered unlicensed operations, poor hygienic practices, and production without regulatory approval.
According to the Authority, the most recent phase of the exercise focused on the Ga East and Ga West Municipalities in the Greater Accra Region.
During the inspections, several facilities were found to be operating without valid licenses and under conditions that posed health risks to consumers.
One of the high-profile closures was Virgen Natural Mineral Water, a sachet water manufacturing facility at Ashongman in the Ga East Municipality.
The FDA said the company was producing and distributing sachet water without the required license and regulatory approval.
“Several facilities have been closed down,” the FDA’s Head of Communications, Mrs. Rhoda Ewurabena Appiah, told journalists after the exercise on Wednesday, July 22.
She added that some operators were also found packaging and selling food products without going through the mandatory FDA registration and inspection processes.
Mrs. Appiah said the enforcement action forms part of the FDA’s broader mandate to safeguard public health and ensure that only compliant businesses operate in the food production and storage space.
“The Authority remains committed to protecting public health by ensuring that only licensed and compliant food businesses operate in the country,” she stated.
She noted that the FDA will continue with unannounced inspections nationwide to clamp down on facilities that compromise food safety standards.
The FDA urged all food manufacturers, processors, and distributors to regularize their operations by acquiring the necessary licenses and adhering to Good Manufacturing Practices.
The Authority warned that it will not hesitate to prosecute persons who continue to operate illegally or endanger public health.
Food safety experts have welcomed the move, saying stricter enforcement is needed to curb the proliferation of unregulated food businesses, particularly in the sachet water and cold storage sectors which serve large numbers of consumers daily.
The FDA says the nationwide exercise will continue in other regions in the coming weeks.
