The Food and Drugs Authority (FDA) has closed down 44 food manufacturing facilities, including sachet water producers and cold stores, during a nationwide enforcement exercise aimed at ensuring compliance with food safety regulations.

The latest inspections, carried out in the Ga East and Ga West Municipalities on Wednesday, July 22, led to the closure of several unlicensed facilities found to be operating under unhygienic conditions. The Authority also discovered that some operators were manufacturing food products without the required regulatory approval.

Speaking to the media after the exercise, the FDA's Head of Communications, Mrs Rhoda Ewurabena Appiah, said the Authority would continue to enforce food safety standards to safeguard public health and ensure that only licensed businesses operate in the country.

"Several facilities have been closed down," she said, stressing that the FDA remains committed to protecting consumers by taking firm action against operators who flout the law.

As part of the exercise, the Authority also shut down Virgen Natural Mineral Water, a sachet water manufacturing facility at Ashongman in the Ga East Municipality, after it was found to be operating without the required licence.

The FDA urged all food manufacturers to comply with regulatory requirements or risk sanctions, including closure of their facilities.