The Food and Drugs Authority (FDA) has confiscated expired food items from the storerooms of Zuarungu Senior High School in the Upper East region during an unannounced visit by an FDA team.The expired items were seized and removed from the school's premises in the Bolgatanga East District, with the FDA urging school administrators to prioritize compliance with food safety standards in educational settings to avoid penalties.Sebastian Mawuli Hotor, the FDA's Upper East Regional Director, emphasized the importance of school administrators ensuring that their food supplies meet FDA safety standards during an interview with Citi News on Friday.He further stated that the confiscated products, supplied to the school for student meals, were taken for safe disposal as part of the FDA's mandate to uphold food safety guidelines.Efforts to reach the school authorities for a response have been unsuccessful thus far.

“We went to Zuarungu SHS as one of the school kitchen inspection that we do. In one of their storerooms, we found about five different brands of products which were bad and then I think one out of them was unregistered as well. We got some from neighbouring schools as well as from Buffer stock.

“From the document we requested for, we were given and then the products were the Free SHS mackerel, the royal gold hard wheat flour, pavani evaporated filled milk, paka tomato paste and queen [pilchards] in tomato sauce.”

“These were the products that we found that were expired. These were products that were supplied to the school for feeding the children. As part of our mandate, we confiscated them and taken them for safe disposal and it is something we will repeat from time to time just to ensure that food safety guidelines are adhered to in all food establishments including food kitchens,” he stated.