Feb 12, 2019
India doesn’t define ‘Junk Food’, invites manipulation
New Delhi, Feb 11: When the whole world is fighting against the ill effects of Junk Food, India is yet to define what junk food is.
'Junk Food' is not defined under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 and Regulations thereunder, Ashwini Kumar Choubey, Minister of State of Health and Family Welfare, informed the Lok Sabha on Friday.
Junk food is a pejorative term for food containing a large number of calories from sugar or fat with little dietary fiber, protein, vitamins or minerals.
Instead, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has prepared guidelines, that too as per the directions of the Delhi High Court.
The guidelines titled as 'Guidelines for making available Wholesome Nutritious, Safe and Hygienic Food to School Children in India' have been prepared by an expert group /central advisory committee.
The Delhi High Court had issued directions while hearing the petition No. 8568 of 2010 titled 'Uday Foundation for Congenial defects and Rare Blood Vs UOI & Others'.
Since India has not 'officially' defined Junk Food, it has left open the door for the multinational junk food giants to manipulate country's health policies in connivance of government officials. Here is the latest example how efforts are on to manipulate India's food policy, which if successful, will not only affect current population but also future generations.
The FSSAI, country's top food regulator, launched 'The Eat Right India' movement in July, 2018 to improve public health in India and combat negative nutritional trends to fight lifestyle diseases and spends crores of taxpayers' money on advertisements to keep Indians healthy. However, a watchdog organisation has accused the FSSAI of providing a 'government platform' to the multinational torchbearers of junk food to influence India's food policies.
The India Resource Center (IRC), an international campaigning organisation based in Berkeley, California, has written a letter to Pawan Agarwal, Chief Executive Officer (CEO), FSSAI, and highlighted the conflict of interest in the FSSAI. Amit Srivastava, Coordinator, IRC, has also marked the copy of letter to Union Health and Family Welfare Minister Jagat Prakash Nadda.
Citing a BMJ report entitled "Making China safe for Coke: how Coca-Cola shaped obesity science and policy in China", Srivastava apprises Agarwal of how Coca-Cola and other companies worked through the China branch of International Life Sciences Institute (ILSI) to influence China's public health policies, including a "shift aligned with Coca-Cola's message that it is activity, not diet, that matters-a claim few public health scholars accept".
ILSI is a non-profit organisation founded by Alex Malaspina, former senior vice president at Coca Cola, and acts as a front group for food, beverage and agrichemical companies, says the letter. However, ILSI Global website describes itself as a nonprofit, worldwide organisation whose mission is to provide science that improves human health and well-being and safeguards the environment. Srivastava further adds that ILSI has a chapter in India as well, and counts Coca-Cola India's Director of Regulatory Affairs as its Treasurer, and representatives from Nestle and Ajinomoto among its board of directors.
"Not surprisingly, ILSI has organised conferences in India downplaying the role of sugar and diet, and promoting increased physical activity as the solution to obesity. What is particularly disturbing is the central involvement of key FSSAI functionaries - who are meant to regulate these junk food companies - in the ILSI organisation itself," says the IRC letter.
Mentioning the conflict of interest, the letter says the Board Member of ILSI-India Dr. Debabrata Kanungo is also on the FSSAI's Scientific Panel on Pesticides Residues and Scientific Panel on Food additives, Flavourings, Processing aids and Materials in contact with food. ILSI- India website displays name of Kanungo as Member of Board of Trustees and introduces him as "Consultant (Medical Toxicology and Risk Assessment), CIB & RC. Govt. of India, (Retd.), Faridabad".
The letter further states that Dr. B Sesikeran, who is on the Board of Trustees of the global ILSI as well as ILSI-India Board member, is also a member of FSSAI's Scientific Panel on Functional foods, Nutraceuticals, Dietetic Products and Other similar products.
In April last year, the FSSAI had come out with the draft of Food Safety and Standards (Labelling and Display) Regulations 2018 that propose mandatory red-label marking on packaged food products containing high levels of fat, sugar and salt. But, the government had to put on hold the draft after some stakeholders expressed concerns.
The FSSAI then set up a group of experts to look into the issue of labelling and made B. Sesikeran head of the group. The other members are director of National Institute of Nutrition (NIN) Hemalatha, and Dr. Nikhil Tandon. Srivastava has also questioned Sesikeran's appointment at the FSSAI's expert committee to look into the draft Food Safety and Standards (Labelling and Display) Regulations 2018.
"The presence of these two individuals (Kanungo and Sesikeran) in such critical positions within FSSAI constitutes a significant conflict of interest. They are representing the industry front group, ILSI, and their inclusion in the scientific panel runs counter to the Food Safety and Standards Act 2006," the letter says and demands removal of Kanungo and Sesikeran from FSSAI panels. Sesikeran's name has been displayed on ILSI Global website as well as ILSI-India website as Member of Board of Trustees.
Citing a 2011 Supreme Court, Srivastava writes that "the inclusion of the two members mentioned above violate the spirit and intent of the Supreme Court decision given the central roles that both members play as board members of ILSI".
The apex court had pulled up FSSAI for keeping Pepsi and Coca-Cola representatives on a committee looking into the alleged use of harmful chemicals in soft drinks and directed the food regulator to renotify all such panels within two weeks and remove names associated with industrial houses.
However, how seriously the FSSAI takes directions of the Supreme Court could be gauged by a news report of last year. Also Read | Government bans junk food advertisements on cartoon channels FSSAI CEO Agarwal was quoted by PTI on August 17, 2018 as saying that FSSAI will go ahead with the labelling norms even if there is no consensus on the matter after the (Sesikeran) panel's suggestions.
Know all about Ashwini Kumar Choubey Political CareerNetworthContactBiography Now, the ball is in the court of Union Health and Family Welfare Minister J.P. Nadda. It will be interesting to watch what action he takes on the matter that involves a larger public interest.
Nescafe “Instant” Coffee: HC asks FSSAI & Health Ministry to take action against Counterfeit product manufacturers.
Delhi High Court Judge, Justice Pratibha M. Singh in the matter of SOCIETE DES PRODUITS NESTLE S.A & ANR v. MOHD ZAHID AND SONS & ORS has asked Ministry of Health & Family Welfare and the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) for taking steps for curbing the menace of manufacturing of counterfeit goods.
Nestlé, a world renowned company in the FMCG sector had filed a John Doe suit in the Hon’ble High Court of Delhi for preventing various third parties that were found by Nestlé to have been actively involved in facilitating the illegal distribution, manufacturing, offering to sell and sale of counterfeit NESCAFÉ instant coffee.
The present John Doe suit was filed by Nestlé in the interest of its brand and the public at large who ought to be protected from being subject to counterfeit edible products, which was granted by the Hon’ble High Court of Delhi. During the raids conducted by the Local Commissioners, multiple manufacturers were found to be counterfeiting food products.
The matter recently came up before the Hon’ble Mrs. Justice Pratibha M. Singh who, considering the gravity of the issue of Food counterfeit sought involvement of the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare and the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) to investigate about the license status of counterfeit manufacturers listed in the suit and also suggest steps already taken and can be further taken in order to stop sale of counterfeit food products revealed in the suit vide order dated 20.12.2018.
Over 5 tonne tobacco products destroyed
Trichy: Food safety department officials destroyed more than five tonne banned tobacco products at Panjappur in Trichy on Monday afternoon.
The team led by designated officer (DO) of food safety department in Trichy Dr S Chithra carried out the process at a location away from the residential area. The destroyed tobacco products were seized in the raids conducted by the food safety department and police in Gujili Street, Kammala Street and Palakkarai areas in the city since August 2018. The seized products were stored in the premises of the food safety department near Kajamalai in Trichy.
The latest seizure was nearly 4 tonne of banned gutka and tobacco products on January 21, 2019, and arrested 2 people for stocking it at a godown illegally. The officials found that they played a major role in supplying the banned items to the retail shops who sell them clandestinely.
Sources said that the raids at the godowns and the subsequent seizure will increase the retail price of the tobacco products. Though Tamil Nadu government led by chief minister J Jayalalithaa had put a ban on chewable tobaccos in 2013, the prevalence of the products remained unstoppable even after six years despite the officials taking action on the violators. The officials pointed out the demand among tobacco lovers.
As far as Tamil Nadu was concerned, the officials said that the banned items were being transported to the state through Dharmapuri and Krishnagiri, said an official on the condition of anonymity.
Whenever the officials carry out the raids at the godowns and retail shops in Trichy, there will be less activity of the violators. The situation will become normal making the products available freely after some time. “We will conduct surprise raids and seize the banned products besides arresting such offenders,” said DO Dr Chithra on Monday.
Poor quality milk supplied for wedding feast, samples sent for testing
Jaipur: Receiving a tip-off about sub-standard milk, paneer and mawa supplied to a marriage garden, health department officials rushed to the spot and destroyed 200kg curd, 150kg ras malai and 20kg paneer in the city on Monday.
Food safety officers said that a firm based at Dhoodh Mandi in Subhash Nagar had supplied 400kg milk, 25 kg paneer and 50kg mawa for a wedding feast.
Health department officials said that the supplier had extracted all the fat from the milk and supplied it to the marriage garden.
“When we checked the quality of milk at the marriage garden, we found that it had no fat, it was solid not fat (SNF),” said a health department official.
He said that the dishes prepared from the milk were destroyed. “The cooks at the marriage garden tried to prepare ras malai and curd from the milk but all efforts went in vain as the milk did not have any fat,” the official said.
The health department officials have collected samples of milk, curd and paneer and sent them for testing in the laboratory. “We have sent the samples for testing to know if the milk was adulterated,” the official said.
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