Zepto Faces Fresh Regulatory Heat As Bengaluru Warehouse Sealed Over Food Safety Violations

Adding to the ongoing regulatory scrutiny, the Food Safety Division of Karnataka’s Food Safety and Drug Administration Department has sealed a major Zepto warehouse in Bengaluru’s Hoskote. 

Officials conducted a special inspection drive on the quick commerce major’s facility under the guidance of Health and Family Welfare Minister UT Khader. 

During the drive, they discovered multiple statutory breaches, including non-compliant product labelling, misbranding, and unhygienic food storage and handling conditions. 

In accordance with FSSAI provisions, authorities immediately sealed the facility. It has also issued a notice to the Zepto warehouse and has recommended that a case be filed before the concerned adjudicating officer for further legal action. 

“Strict legal action will be taken against food business operators found violating food safety regulations. The Food Safety and Drug Administration Department will continue to undertake such special inspection drives to ensure that the public has access to safe, quality and hygienic food,” the authority said.

The facility in question is a large warehouse operated by Zepto in partnership with global logistics firm Nippon Express.

It is used for storage and distribution of food, fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG), and household goods, according to an erstwhile statement by Nippon Express at the time of its inauguration. 

“Routine food safety inspections are conducted by authorities across the country as part of their regular oversight. We have fully cooperated with the authorities during the inspection, taken note of the observations and suggestions shared, and are taking the necessary steps to address them,” a Zepto spokesperson said. 

Quick commerce platforms have faced the heat from regulatory authorities over hygiene and food safety earlier too. Maharashtra authorities raided Zepto and Blinkit’s dark stores last year and Telangana authorities had also raided a Blinkit warehouse in 2024. 

The raid on Zepto follows a string of inspections in Bengaluru that have cracked down on eateries and restaurants, including multiple three- and five-star hotels where officials found expired food products, unhygienic storage, and other practices violating food safety norms.

The raid comes at a time when Zepto’s IPO is hanging in the balance. After filing its draft papers for an IPO, Zepto announced that it will be pausing its plans to go public but instead look at raising ₹1,000 Cr in a pre-IPO funding round. 

It had proposed a fresh issue of up to ₹8,010 Cr in its IPO papers, while investors were set to offload up to 11.35 Cr shares via an offer for sale. 

As per reports, the company was targeting a valuation of around $4.5 Bn for the IPO. However, concerns that the valuation may fall short of the company’s expectations eventually led it to pause the IPO plans for at least two-three quarters. 

On the financial front, the startup’s net loss increased to ₹5,095 Cr in FY26 from ₹4,697 Cr in the previous year, even as operating revenue nearly doubled to ₹22,624 Cr.

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