dark stores of leading quick commerce platforms, especially for packaged foods, after several hygiene lapses came to light in recent weeks, said people familiar with the matter.
Not just these warehouses, but direct-to-consumer food brands too have received ‘surprise visits’ from Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) officials, the people told ET on condition of anonymity. Quick commerce companies are exercising more caution — in hygiene as well as in adding small-scale new-age brands to their platforms, they said.
ET’s queries emailed to Blinkit, Zepto, BigBasket (which runs BB Now) and Swiggy (for Instamart) didn’t elicit response till press time. However, an FSSAI official confirmed escalated checks across cities.
The FSSAI official said, “These audits are being done to ensure quality control at all dark stores.”
A senior quick commerce executive, on condition of anonymity, said that when multiple violations were found by Telangana’s Commissioner of Food Safety at Blinkit warehouses near Hyderabad, other companies’ dark stores were checked too. “Yes, ours too was checked, along with all other top names one can think of,” the executive said.
The founder of a mid-scale consumer staple brand confirmed a surprise check