Officials raided a Zepto warehouse in Hoskote and allegedly found unhygienic food-handling and storage conditions. (Photo: Special arrangement)The Karnataka Food Safety and Drug Administration (FSDA) Department on Tuesday raided a Zepto warehouse and three Indira Canteens in Bengaluru, allegedly finding violations of food safety practices, including unhygienic food-handling, non-compliant labelling, and misbranding. The warehouse and one of the canteens were subsequently sealed.The development comes close on the heels of a crackdown on unsafe food practices in high-end hotels in Bengaluru and a ban on the sale of junk food around schools and colleges in the city.An FSDA team raided a Zepto warehouse in Hoskote in Bengaluru rural district and allegedly found unhygienic food-handling and storage conditions, issues with labelling, misbranding, and other Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) violations. The warehouse was sealed, a notice was issued, and it was recommended that a case be filed before the adjudicating officer concerned for further legal action.“Routine food safety inspections are conducted by authorities across the country as part of their regular oversight. We have fully cooperated with the authorities during the inspection, taken note of the observations and suggestions shared, and are taking the necessary steps to address them,” Zepto said in a statement. “We remain committed to continuously strengthening our processes and maintaining high standards of food safety and hygiene.”Also Read | Expired meat, veggies with fungus: What officials found at 6 Bengaluru 5-star hotelsAnother FSDA team inspected the main kitchens or food preparation units of the Indira Canteens—subsidised canteens launched by the Karnataka government—at Gottigere, Lingarajapuram and Singasandra in Bengaluru. During the inspections, various food safety violations were allegedly observed.Officials issued notices to the food business operators of all three establishments and recommended filing cases. The Indira Canteen warehouse at Gottigere was sealed due to alleged unhygienic food-handling and storage conditions.During the inspection, samples of various food products, including pulses, turmeric powder, cooking oil, jaggery, salt, sugar and other prepared food items, were collected and sent to the designated food laboratories for analysis to assess their quality and compliance with prescribed food safety standards.