Blinkit Warehouse Near Hyderabad Raided, Multiple Violations Detected

A task force team of the Commissioner of Food Safety in Telangana conducted an inspection at a Blinkit warehouse in the state and found multiple violations, such as expired products and unhygienic storage standards.

The raid was done on Wednesday at a warehouse of Zomato's quick-commerce arm in Devaryamjal, a hamlet near Hyderabad.

The task force concluded that the premises were "very disorganised, unhygienic and dusty at storage racks."

There was a lack of food safety supervisors and food handlers were also found to be operating without headgear, gloves and aprons. "Medical fitness certificates of food handlers not available. Further, cosmetic products were stored along with food products," the Commissioner said on Thursday in a statement on social media platform X (formerly Twitter).

Several products, including suji, raw peanut butter, maida, poha, besan and bajra worth Rs 30,000, were seized after the local manufacturer's license was found to be expired.

"Suspected infested whole farm ragi flour and toor dal worth Rs 52,000 were seized and samples sent to the lab. Notice will be issued and further action shall be taken accordingly," the commissioner said.

In response, a Blinkit spokesperson said, "We take safety and hygiene standards very seriously. We are closely working with our warehouse partner and the Food Safety department to implement corrective actions from the findings."

Blinkit was founded 11 years ago and operates 526 dark stores today, which are strategically located warehouses that are the last-mile delivery hubs to fulfil the 10-minute deliveries. It has expanded steadily over the past few quarters, with 75 net new stores added in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2024. However, it will now add another 474 stores in the next 12 months, nearly doubling its store count and setting the stage for a rapid, aggressive expansion.