Madurai food officials find a novel way to promote healthy eating among youngsters

MADURAI: The Madurai district food safety department on Friday conducted a novel initiative to promote healthy eating among youngsters. It set up food stalls on Lady Doak College campus where an inter-college cultural festival was being held. Officials spoke to the participants about safe, unsafe and healthy eating methods.

The stalls that were put up broadly classified into ‘unsafe food stall’, ‘safe and traditional food stall’, ‘healthy food stall’ and ‘alternative food stall’.

In the unsafe food stall, items like cakes, sweets and savouries that were very colourful were put up. As the students came to purchase those items, food safety officials gave an awareness talk on how eating items in which synthetic colours were used and on how it could increase the risk of cancer. 

“Eating food items in which high amount of artificial colouring is used is highly unhealthy. As students visit this stall and wanted to buy certain snacks, we are asking the students themselves to dump such items in the garbage,” designated officer for district food safety department Madurai Dr M Somasundaram said.

The officials claimed that this initiative was first-of-its-kind in Madurai and that it was done as part of the Eat Right India campaign. “More such events would be held in other colleges in the district,” a food safety officer said.

In the 'safe food' stall, snack items in which there was no artificial colouring and other traditional items like multi-grain kalakala, pearl millet-based sweets were displayed. 

In healthy food stall, snacks made with banana stem, lima bean, white chickpeas and others which were low in salt, sugar and fat were displayed.

In the alternative food stalls, pearl millet and other healthy grain-based snack items were displayed.