Kabul, July 15 : Afghan authorities collected and destroyed 65 tonnes of expired and low-quality food items in the capital Kabul on Tuesday, officials from the Ministry of Public Health said.

"Today, 65 tonnes, approximately 11,000 packages of food items (expired and low-quality), were destroyed in the presence of representatives from the Intelligence Directorate and the Kabul municipality," said Mohammad Massoud Rahimi, an official from the ministry's food and drug deputy.

Rahimi emphasised the deputy's commitment to public safety, saying it is firmly committed to eliminating such food items and medicines, and legal action will be taken against violators.

According to him, since March 21 the deputy has collected and destroyed a total of 140 tonnes of expired and low-quality food and pharmaceutical products in Kabul, reported Xinhua news agency.

Earlier authorities in southern Afghanistan's Kandahar and neighbouring Zabul province set fire and destroyed 10 tonnes of expired and low-quality food and medicine.

In the March crackdown on expired medicine and foodstuff, the authorities collected three tonnes of outdated and low-quality food and medicine from Kandahar's provincial capital Kandahar city and adjoining districts and burned them publicly.

On March 20, the provincial government authorities in Zabul province collected seven tonnes of expired and low-quality medicine and food and set them on fire publicly in the provincial capital Qalat.

Authorities also warned that legal action will be taken against anyone caught selling substandard goods.

The action, according to the officials, is part of a broader effort by Afghan authorities to ensure the safety of medicines and food items. Similar burnings of outdated drugs and food have been conducted in other cities, including the capital Kabul in recent months.

On Monday, Afghanistan's counter-narcotics police seized 125 kg of methamphetamine during a series of operations in the Helmand province.

The contraband was discovered on the outskirts of the Khanshin district and four individuals were arrested in connection with the case. Their dossiers have been referred to the judiciary for further investigation and possible legal process.

The Afghan interim government banned poppy cultivation, its processing into drugs, and drug trafficking to eliminate the menace of drugs from the once poppy-growing country.

/IANS