By Jaka Ceesay Jaiteh
Hayatt Ltd has denied allegations of distribution of expired canned drinks in the country.
The main supplier of Delta fruit canned drink, Hayatt Ltd has recently been accused of being involved in the distribution of a canned drink with misleading labels and fraudulent act after a video went viral on the internet.
Hayatt Ltd has been the main supplier of delta canned drink since 2018 from a Vietnamese company called Tan Do Refreshing Water Co Ltd.
The scandal has drawn immense attention from various sectors most especially the food safety and quality authority which is responsible for the inspections of food products.
Food Safety and Quality Authority on July 3 released a press release stating that the alleged act is part of a gross violation of the Food Safety & Quality Act 2011 (Section 42) and then took the following actions: a mandatory product recall has been initiated to recover all the products supplied so far for destruction and disposal; FSQA food Inspectors and personnel have been dispatched to confiscate any of the products found in shops, supermarkets and warehouses all over the country; [and] steps have also been taken to prosecute the supplier.
The suppliers have now denied allegations of distribution of expired canned drinks and also using misleading labels.
“The drink labels would have said to be misleading if the flavor stated on the label was not the same as the juice inside,” Muhammed Jallow, of Hayatt Ltd said.
“Due to the coronavirus pandemic the manufacturers could not get cans from China and therefore had to use the only alternative which were empty cans of another drink the company manufactures called Lacy. But apart from that all the allegations made were false,” Muhammed added.
