KARACHI: The city commissioner has told the Sindh High Court that every milk sample collected from Karachi was found unfit for human consumption by the Pakistan Standards & Quality Control Authority (PSQCA).
The report submitted on behalf of the commissioner stated that the presence of formalin in 22 samples and phosphate in eight samples indicated extensive adulteration.
It further said there was no justification for any increase in the price of fresh milk, particularly due to the decline in consumption of milk-related products in winter.
A dairy farmer had filed a petition in 2023 challenging a notification fixing the official price of fresh milk in October 2023, citing the Department of Agriculture, supply and price, the commissioner and others as respondents.
In compliance with the last court order, a report on behalf of the commissioner of Karachi was placed before a two-judge constitutional bench of the SHC headed by Justice Adnan Iqbal Chaudhry.
The report stated that the impugned notification, as well as subsequent notifications, were issued for revision of milk prices after due deliberations with all relevant stakeholders and various meetings were convened with stakeholders to finalise milk prices.
However, it maintained that the hygiene practices and safety standards followed by wholesalers, farmers and retailers were hazardous to human health.
An exercise of quality checking of milk samples was conducted across the city at the request of a milk retailer association and the samples were sent to the PSQCA for testing.
“After testing, the PSQCA declared all the samples unfit for human consumption. In the meeting held on 20.11.2025, a representative of the PSQCA stated that due to unhygienic practices adopted by farmers, wholesalers and retailers, the milk was found unfit for human consumption. He further noted that the presence of formalin in 22 samples and phosphate in eight samples indicates extensive adulteration,” the report added.
The commissioner stated that milk sellers’ associations were instructed to formulate joint Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) to ensure proper hygiene and safety practices, which were prepared and submitted to the commissioner’s office on November 25.
In a meeting held on November 20, a representative of the Bureau of Supply & Prices observed that there was no justification for any increase in milk prices at this stage, particularly in view of the seasonal decline in consumption and anticipated price decrease in the coming month.
Subsequently, a fresh notification was issued on November 27 fixing the maximum retail price of fresh milk at Rs220 per litre, and all associations were instructed to adhere to the notified rates, maintain proper measurement practices and ensure quality strictly in accordance with the SOPs.
The bench noted that since no one was present for the petitioner to dispute the reports, the same were taken on record.
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