Asyut Authorities Bust Unlicensed Factory Producing Counterfeit Cooking Oil

The Directorate of Supply and Internal Trade in Asyut governorate has dealt a major blow to commercial fraud operations, successfully shutting down an unlicensed factory producing and bottling cooking oil in the Manfalut district, before quantities of oil from unknown sources could reach the market. The operation aimed to protect consumer health and crack down on goods that fail to meet required standards.

The seizure was carried out as part of a large-scale inspection campaign launched on the instructions of Major General Mohamed Alwan, Governor of Asyut, and led by Engineer Khaled Mohamed Ahmed, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Supply in the governorate, with the participation of Abdel Rahim Sayed, Director of the Manfalut Supply Department.

Details of the violations: The inspection campaign uncovered several illegal practices carried out by those running the factory, most notably:

• Operating a facility for producing and bottling cooking oils without obtaining the necessary licences.
• Counterfeiting the trademarks of major, well-known oil companies in the market.
• Fabricating false product data and expiry dates with the intent to deceive consumers and generate illicit profits.

Scale of the seizure: Authorities immediately confiscated the contents of the factory, which included:

• 500 litres of loose cooking oil of unknown origin.
• 540 bottles of oil already packaged and ready for sale and distribution.
• Large quantities of empty bottles prepared for refilling.
• Stickers bearing trademarks counterfeiting those of other companies.
• A printing and coding machine used to forge production and expiry dates.

The relevant authorities have taken all necessary legal measures regarding the incident, and the case has been referred to the competent investigative bodies to proceed in accordance with the laws governing trade and health requirements.

Source: Al-Balad