9k tonnes of food items seized from mobile vendors in Sharjah

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9k tonnes of food items seized from mobile vendors in Sharjah

Sharjah - The vendors are active on Fridays and public holidays.

by

Afkar Ali Ahmed

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Published: Sat 1 Dec 2018, 8:34 PM

Mobile vendors who sell products that are unfit for human consumption and affect public health are being cracked down by the Sharjah Municipality.
Speaking to Khaleej Times, Khalifa Bu Ghanem Al Suwaidi, director of the inspection department at the Sharjah Municipality, said they have confiscated 50 tonnes of various goods - bags, clothes, cosmetics, shoes, fake electronic products - and 9,000 tonnes of food items unfit for human use.
"Some of the seized products - clothes and shoes - were donated to charities. Other products had to be destroyed as they were deemed harmful to public health," he said.
"Due to the efforts of the municipality in coordination with the police and economic department, illegal pop-up markets have declined by 90 per cent and have concentrated in the industrial zones. Illegal markets and vendors now target workers of low-income to buy cheap products at very low prices," Al Suwaidi added.
He said the vendors are active on Fridays and public holidays. "They offer goods from unknown sources of origin. In most cases the food is expired or close to expiry and not suitable for human consumption, exposing buyers to health risks and food poisoning. The violators are slapped with fines up to Dh9,000 and will be doubled in case of repeating the violation." 
He warned consumers against buying things from these illegal markets because of its impact on public health. He urged the public to cooperate with municipality by reporting them on the hotline 993.
afkarali@khaleejtimes.com
 


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