Food safety inspectors uncover counterfeit butter and E.coli contamination at a well-known “Ivanovka” store in central Baku
A routine inspection at the “Ivanovka” store in Baku’s Sabail district uncovered counterfeit dairy products and dangerous microbiological contamination, Azerbaijan’s Food Safety Agency (AFSA) reported.
The shop, located at 49 Istiglaliyyat Street and registered to Vahid Ismayilov, was checked after inspectors collected samples of butter and other dairy products for laboratory analysis.
Tests revealed that the butter marketed as natural actually contained vegetable fats or blended oils, contradicting the declared labeling. Additional checks found that products such as ghee, cottage cheese, and cream were being sold without veterinary certificates or proper labeling.
Most alarming, laboratory results showed that the cottage cheese contained E.coli bacteria, indicating severe microbiological violations.
AFSA sealed and confiscated all questionable products, placing them in storage pending further investigation. The store owner claimed he purchased dairy items from private suppliers in the village of Ivanovka in the Ismayilli district and from local markets.
An administrative protocol has been filed, and the store has been temporarily banned from selling dairy products.
Concerns over the “Ivanovka” brand
Eyub Huseynov, head of the Free Consumers Union, said Baku currently has around 20 stores using the “Ivanovka” name:
“In reality, only two of these shops are genuinely connected to the original Ivanovka village. The violations discovered in one of them raise the possibility that the situation in the others may be even worse. Authorities must take control and prohibit misuse of the Ivanovka brand by businesses that have no connection to the village.”
AFSA said monitoring continues both in Baku and directly in the Ismayilli-based production sites. Samples of butter and cottage cheese have been sent to the Food Safety Institute for further testing, and official results will be released once the investigation concludes.
Source: Bizim.Media
