The Kathmandu Metropolitan City started inspecting meat shops and eateries from Monday.

On the first day, the inspection team probed eight meat shops, two fish shops and one sweet shop in Anamnagar, New Baneshwor and Old Baneshwor and found out that all of them were selling unhygienic items to consumers.

 “Most of the meat shops we inspected had not followed the basic hygiene. Likewise, the sweet shop was found mixing inedible colours and oil in their products,” said Hari Kumar Shrestha, head of the KMC’s Urban Health Division.

The shop owners were warned and told to follow the basic hygiene and sell healthy items. They have two weeks to make the changes.

Kathmandu has around 2,500 meat shops and around 1,000 fish shops.

Bimala Khanal, president of Forum for Protection of Consumers’ Eye Nepal, who also participated in the inspection, said she found the situation of eateries and meat shops worrisome.

“Most of the shop owners are after making profits and they are rarely concerned about the consumers’ health,” she said.

Public health is being undermined as the government has not come up with a proper regulations and guidelines to control malpractices that are being committed by eateries and meat shops. Even the existing Meat Inspection Act and the Food Act have not been implemented.

Khanal said the authorities should treat the cases of adulteration and lack of hygiene in food industry strongly and immediately.

 “If a shop is found selling adulterated or unhygienic food items, the shop owner is let off with a small fine. This has to change. After all, it is public health we are dealing with here” said Khanal.