எது சிறந்த சமையல் எண்ணெய்?

          இன்று ஷாப்பிங் என்பதே ஒரு கலாசாரமாக மாறிவிட்டது. ஆயிரக்கணக்கில் பணம் செலவழித்து பல பொருட்களை வாங்குகிறோம். ஆனால், செலவழித்த காசுக்கு அந்த பொருட்கள் தரமானதா எனில் கேள்விக்குறிதான்!  

இதற்கொரு தீர்வாக, கான்சர்ட் என்கிற அமைப்பு மக்கள் அதிகம் வாங்கி பயன்படுத்தும் பொருட்களின் தரத்தை அங்கீகரிக்கப்பட்ட, தரமான லேப்களில் சோதித்து, விழிப்புணர்வை ஏற்படுத்த முடிவு செய்தது.

ஏழு முக்கிய பொருட்களையும் மூன்று முக்கிய சேவைகளின் தரத்தையும் அக்குவேறு ஆணிவேறாக அலசி ஆராய்ந்து கண்டுபிடிக்கப்பட்ட அந்த முடிவுகள் அடுத்தடுத்து வரும் நாணயம் விகடனில் வெளியாகும். இந்த ஆய்வில் முதல் ரிப்போர்ட், மக்கள் அதிகம் பயன்படுத்தும் சமையல் எண்ணெய் பற்றியது. தென் இந்தியாவில் விற்பனையாகும் பெரிய நிறுவனங்களின் சமையல் எண்ணெய் பிராண்டுகள் தேர்வுக்கு எடுத்துக் கொள்ளப்பட்டன.

அந்த முடிவுகளை தெரிந்துகொள்ளும் முன், ஒரு பொருளை மக்கள் எப்படி தேர்வு செய்கிறார்கள் என்பதை அறிய ஒரு சிறிய சர்வே நடத்தப்பட்டது. அந்த சர்வேயின்படி, பொருட்களை வாங்குகிறவர்கள் விளம்பரத்தைப் பார்த்தும், டாக்டர் சொன்னதாலும் வாங்கியதாக சொன்னார்கள். இன்னும் சிலர் விலையைப் பார்த்தும், இலவசப் பொருட்களுக்காக வாங்கியதாகவும் சொன்னார்கள். தரத்தைப் பார்த்து யாரும் பொருளை வாங்குவதாக சொல்லவில்லை.  

இனி ரிப்போர்ட்டுக்குள் செல்வோம். கீழே இருக்கும் அளவுகோல்களின் அடிப்படையில் சமையல் எண்ணெய்களை சோதனை செய்தோம்.

1. பேக்கேஜிங் (லேபிளுடன்) 2. ஆரோக்கிய மானதா? 3. தரமானதா? 4. விலை? 5. நிறம், மணம், பார்வை எப்படி இருக்கிறது போன்ற அளவு கோல்களை வைத்து சோதனை செய்யப்பட்டது. அதன் முடிவுகள் இதோ!

* பி.எஃப்.ஏ. விதிமுறைகள் 1955 மற்றும் எஃப்.எஸ். அண்ட் எஸ் விதிமுறைகள் 2011- விதிமுறைபடி, எண்ணெய்யின் லேபிளில் Free From argemone oil என்ற எச்சரிக்கை வாசகத்தைக் கட்டாயம் எழுதி இருக்க வேண்டும்.

அதாவது, இந்த எண்ணெய்யில் நச்சுப் பொருட்கள் அல்லது சாப்பிடக்கூடாத எண்ணெய் எதுவும் இல்லை என்ற உத்தரவாதம் அந்த லேபிளில் இருக்க வேண்டும்.

ஆனால், பின்வரும் சில நிறுவனங்கள் தயாரிக்கும் எண்ணெய் பாக்கெட்டுகளில் இது மாதிரியான எச்சரிக்கை வாக்கியங்கள் எதுவும் இல்லை.

எஃப்.எஸ்.எஸ்.ஏ. விதிமுறைகள் 2011-படி எண்ணெய்யில் இருக்கும் சத்துகளை (Nutritional Information) லேபிளில் குறிப்பிட வேண்டும். ஆனால், காதி கிராமத்யோக், நந்தினி, இதயம் உள்ளிட்ட சில எண்ணெய்களில் இந்த தகவல்கள் இல்லை.  

பொருளின் பெயர், உற்பத்தியாளர் பெயர், அவரது முகவரி, பேட்ச் கோட் எண், உற்பத்தி செய்த தேதி, எவ்வளவு நாள் பயன்படுத்தலாம் என்ற தகவல், சத்துப்பொருட்களை பற்றிய தகவல், வாடிக்கையாளர்கள் புகார் செய்வதற்கான எண்கள் மற்றும் நச்சு பொருட்கள் இல்லை என்பது போன்ற தகவல்கள் கட்டாயம் அதன் லேபிளிலில் இருக்க வேண்டும்.

எனினும், இதை சரிபார்த்து வாங்குவது வாடிக்கையாளரின் கடமையே!

Technical errors delay online licensing, registration process for new FBOs

The procedure for application of local license/registration for starting or renewing a food business operation in Mumbai and Thane was supposed to go online on Saturday. However, due to technical difficulties with the software it has been postponed to the next week.

This was informed by Suresh Annapure, assistant commissioner, food, Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Thane division.

“Food and drugs commissioner Mahesh Zagade would be inaugurating the software,” Annapure informed.

Currently, the provision for making an online application is only present for central licenses, and Maharashtra will be the first state to have local licenses and registration procedure placed online.

However, there are a number of technical errors, which have to be corrected before that. One, HSAN (Harmonisation system number) codes adapted from international standards used for classification of commodities is not applicable for Indian food items.

“It is very difficult to classify traditional Indian products using this code, for example products like dosa mix, frozen wada, and frozen idli have not been allotted any category. So we have to skip that and go to the next question, else software throws a problem,” said M M Chitale, FBO consulting and technical services, who has currently applied for around 25 licenses on behalf of the food business operators. He said that the categorisation codes should be adapted to the Indian food market.

Further, Chitale mentioned that even the transporters need to obtain a license or get themselves registered. “We hardly have any dedicated transport for the food businesses except for commodities like milk and oil. The rest of the products are transported by the food business operators as per convenience. So, sometimes a lorry carrying cement is also used for transporting food, so who is responsible for quality then,” he asked.

“Also, will the transporter travelling from one state to another need two different licenses,” Chitale asked, further.

There are several other problems that licensing authorities and FBOs are facing related to licenses, albeit the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), has sent an advisory to the state enforcement wings to stop imposing penalty in the case of delay of application for renewal of licenses. This relaxation on penalty will be applicable till August 5, 2012.

Prior to the new food law, any delay in making an application for renewal was treated with a penalty of Rs 100 per day.

“Meanwhile, what is the action that licensing authorities should take if the renewal date expires? Since there is no penalty, should we consider the license cancelled or let go the delay and renew the licenses,” asked Annapure.

“We have asked the FSSAI for a guideline which is expected next week,” Annapure said. Chitale suggested that an NOC (No Objection Certificate) can be issued in the interim period to allow food business operators function normally.

The industry opines that the Authority has started the enforcement work in haste without proper homework done. “There is absolutely no awareness about the licensing procedure of the Food Safety and Standards Act among the FBOs particularly in the rural areas. A massive awareness campaign with inclusion of students and NGOs (non-governmental organisations) can help,” Chitale suggested.

“Interestingly, Maharashtra has collected around Rs 35 crore up till now as licensing fee paid by the FBO from the time the new food law has come into force. The target is Rs 510 crore. Is there a way to divert these funds to create awareness? The authority can easily reach the FBO and even help him fill the requisite form by going to the location of his business. The collected revenue can be utilised this way,” said another source.

FSSAI ADVERTISEMENT IN DINAMANI

Hunt on for a new chairperson

The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) is likely to get a new chairperson soon. Sources in the health ministry disclosed that among the dozen contenders in the fray, the Appointments Committee of Cabinet (ACC) is all set to approve the name of former health secretary K. Chandramouli for the post.
Those considered for the post included K. Sujatha Rao, former health secretary and Dr R.K. Srivastava, former Director General of Health Secrvices (DGHS).
Chandramouli is a Uttar Pradesh cadre IAS officer of 1975 batch. He retired this October as Union health secretary. Prior to this, he worked as secretary, National AIDS control Organisation (NACO).

India drinks milk & detergent!

It is official now. Indians are consuming adulterated milk containing detergent which not only has a very less nutritious value but is also health hazardous, a recent Government survey has revealed.
In its first-ever national survey on milk adulteration 2011, the Food Safety Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) found that of the total 1,791 samples tested throughout the country, at least over 68 per cent i.e. 1,226 samples were either diluted with water or mixed with harmful detergent.
Adulteration was widely prevalent - in rural as well as urban areas - in packed and loose milk both, samples of which were tested in the Government's laboratories.
The situation was worst in States like Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Daman and Diu, Jharkhand, Odisha, West Bengal and Mizoram where all the samples collected were found to be contaminated or not conforming to the standards.
Except Goa and Puducherry, where all the samples picked conformed to the standards, all other States including Delhi failed to meet the standards for milk.
For instance, in Manipur 96 per cent samples were not conforming the standards, in Meghalaya it was 96 per cent, followed by Tripura (92 per cent), Gujarat (89%), Sikkim (89%), Uttrakhand (88%), Uttar Pradesh (88%), Nagaland (86%), Jammu & Kashmir (83%), Punjab (81%).
In Rajasthan it was 76% followed by Delhi (70%), Haryana (70%), Arunachal Pradesh (68%), Maharashtra (65%), Himachal (59%), Chandigarh (48%) among others.
The deviations were found highest for fat (%) and SNF (%) in 574 samples (46.8%) of the total non -conformity. Skim Milk Powder (SMP) was found in 548 samples (44.69%) which included presence of glucose in 477 samples.
"The snap shot survey was conducted with an aim to identify the common adulterants in milk in rural and urban areas in different states besides finding out the non-conforming samples in loose and packed milk throughout the country," said a senior official from the FSSAI.
He explained that reagents like salt and glucose are added to alter the thickness and viscosity. Adding starch prevents curdling of milk. Salt and detergents are added to adjust the lactometre reading to add thickness to the milk.
The survey has only proved how authorities concerned have failed to check this blatant violation of the standards for milk which is otherwise meant for strengthening bones, cardiovascular improvements and oral health.

FSO INSPECTION FORM FOR EXISTING & NEW LICENSE

Licensing and Registration of Food Businesses under FSSR, 2011

With effect from August 5, 2011, the Food Safety and Standard (Licensing and Registration of Food Business) Regulations, 2011, have come into force and all the food business operators have to comply with these requirements.

Henceforth, all food business operators in the country will be registered or licensed in accordance with the procedures laid down hereunder, the summary of which is presented below for awareness:
 
Registration of petty food business

" All petty food business operators shall register themselves with the registering authority by submitting an application for registration as prescribed in these rules.
" The petty food manufacturer shall follow the basic hygiene and safety requirements provided in Part I of Schedule 4 of these regulations and provide a self-attested declaration of adherence to these requirements with the application.
" The registering authority shall consider the application and may either grant registration or reject it with reasons to be recorded in writing or issue notice for inspection, within 7 days of receipt of an application for registration.
" The registering authority shall issue a registration certificate and a photo identity card, after completing the process and which shall be displayed at a prominent place at all times within the premises or vehicle or cart or any other place where the person carries on sale / manufacture of food in case of petty food business.
" The registering authority or any officer or agency specifically authorised for this purpose shall carry out safety inspection of the registered establishments at least once in a year.

License for food business

No person shall commence any food business unless he possesses a valid license.
" Provided that any person or food business operator carrying on food business on the date of notification of these regulations, under a license, registration or permission, as the case may be, under the Acts or Orders mentioned in the Second Schedule of the Act shall get their existing license converted into the license / registration under these regulations by making an application to the licensing / registering authority after complying with the safety requirements mentioned in the Schedule 4 contained under different parts dependent on nature of business, within one year of notification of these regulations.
" In case of difficulty, the licensing authority with the approval of the food safety commissioner in the state will determine the advisability of applying any specific condition keeping in view the need to ensure safety of food and public interest.
" No license fee will have to be paid for the remaining period of the validity of the earlier license or registration granted under any of the said Acts or Orders.
" Non-compliance with this provision by a food business operator will attract penalty under Section 55 of the Act.
" License for commencing or carrying on food business, which falls under Schedule 1, shall be granted by the Central Licensing Authority, provided that food authority may through notification make such changes or modify the list given in the Schedule I as considered necessary.
" License for commencing or carrying on food business, which are not covered under Schedule 1, shall be granted by the concerned state / UTs licensing authority.
" Further no person shall manufacture, import, sell, stock, exhibit for distribution or sale any article of food which has been subjected to the treatment of irradiation, except under a license obtained from Department of Atomic Energy under the Atomic Energy (Control of Irradiation of Food) Regulations, 1996.

List of food business falling under the purview of Central Licensing Authority
" I. Dairy units including milk chilling units equipped to handle or process more than 50,000 litres of liquid milk / day or 2,500 MT of milk solid per annum.
" II. Vegetable oil processing units and units producing vegetable oil by the process of solvent extraction and refineries including oil expeller unit having installed capacity more than 2 MT per day.
" III. All slaughter houses equipped to slaughter more than 50 large animals or 150 or more small animals including sheep and goats or 1,000 or more poultry birds per day.
" IV. Meat processing units equipped to handle or process more than 500 kg of meat per day or 150 MT per annum.
" V. All food processing units other than mentioned under (I) to (IV) including relabellers and repackers having installed capacity more than 2 MT / day except grains, cereals and pulses milling units.
" VI. 100% Export Oriented Units.
" VII. All importers importing food items including food ingredients and additives for commercial use.
" VIII. All food business operators manufacturing any article of food containing ingredients or substances or using technologies or processes or combination thereof whose safety has not been established through these regulations or which do not have a history of safe use or food containing ingredients which are being introduced for the first time in the country.
" IX. Food business operator operating in two or more states.
" X. Food catering services in establishments and units under Central government agencies like railways, air and airport, seaport, defence etc.

General requirements on hygienic and sanitary practices to be followed by all FBOs applying for Registration and License
" For those applying for registrations, the requirements are very basic and primarily to ensure safe and hygienic sourcing, handling, storing, serving and prevention of contamination of food. These are applicable to the street food vendors as well as to the units other than manufacturing and processing.
" Further, the elaborate licensing requirements are applicable to the food establishments, other than those who apply for registration, in which food is being handled, processed, manufactured, packed, stored, and distributed by the food business operator and the persons handling them should conform to the sanitary and hygienic requirement, food safety measures and other standards as specified below.
" It shall also be deemed to be the responsibility of the food business operator to ensure adherence to necessary requirements.
" In addition to the requirements specified, the food business operator shall identify steps in the activities of food business, which are critical to ensure food safety, and ensure that safety procedures are identified, implemented, maintained and reviewed periodically.
" These requirements are explained under 12 main heads and in general based on the generally acceptable guidelines of the good manufacturing practices and good hygiene practices. The compliance to these requirements is one of the pre-requisite to get a new license by way of submission of food safety plan adopted or certificate. It may be noted that in case of units falling under Central licensing it has to be a certificate from accredited agency.


1 Location and surroundings
2 Layout and design of food establishment premises
3 Equipment & containers
4 Facilities
4.1 Water Supply
4.2 Cleaning utensils and equipments
4.3 Washing of raw materials
4.4 Ice and steam
4.5 Drainage and waste disposal
4.6 Personnel facilities and toilets
4.7 Air quality and ventilation
4.8 Lighting
5 Food operations and controls
5.1 Procurement of raw materials
5.2 Storage of raw materials and food
5.3 Food processing / preparation, packaging and distribution / service
5.4 Food packaging
5.5 Food distribution and service
6 Management and supervision
7 Food testing facilities
8 Audit, documentation and records
9 Sanitation and maintenance of establishment premises
9.1 Cleaning and maintenance
9.2 Pest control systems
9.3
10 Personal hygiene
10.1 Health status
10.2 Personnel cleanliness
10.3 Visitors
11 Product information and consumer awareness
12 Training

Apart from these requirements there are certain specific requirements for those manufacturing, processing, storing and selling of milk and milk products, meat and catering and food service establishments.

Food and Safety Authority of India to invite suggestions

The Food And Safety Authority of India is issuing shortly a notification inviting suggestions from the public and trade bodies regarding 400 standards fixed for various food items,a top official said today. 

The present Act had been brought amalgamating seven different acts concerned with the food industry,V.N.Gaur, Chief Executive Officer of the Authority, said. "We have taken the old standards into consideration during the framing of the act.We are not happy with the present standards and there is scope for improvement and polishing". he said participating in an awareness programme on Food Safety Standards Act. The suggestions will be examined by a scientific committee,under which a panel of 120 scientists are working. 

The CEO rejected the argument that the Act would come in the way of feeding people,starving in the country. He said the issue(setting standards will come in the way of feeding poor people)was discussed even at the World Food summit where a resolve was made to bring down number of people suffering from chronic hunger from a billion to 50 per cent by 2015. 

While Government's philosophy was not to hang wrongdoers,it wanted punishment to be deterrent for violators, he said. "We want the stake holders to come along with us.The act is yet to be implemented in some states,while in other states people have been prosecuted under the act." "We have to see what happens in the months to come.The problems in implementing the act..we will take it to the notice of the Government,and it should consider it.But any penalty should not be convenient,it should be deterrent.We are strong on that," he said. 

The Primary food produce from the farm had been exempted from the ambit of the act.But at the same time the Government was launching a major programme for the farmers so that they used less fertilsers and harmful pesticides following certain practices.

There will be a massive awareness programme for the farmers also."It is being taken up in a big manner." The programme was organised by the Madurai District Tiny and Small Industries Association.

Pollution-hit Tuticorin salt manufacturers worried by food safety act being implemented

Fly ash from thermal power plants in the area settles on the salt; affects quality

 
A salt pan in front of the Tuticorin Thermal Power Station

The salt manufacturers in Tuticorin, one of the major salt-producing centre in the country, are upset with the stringent Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 (FSSA) being implemented. They claim there is too much pollution due to thermal power plants in the area, which makes it difficult to maintain quality in their products as envisaged by the Act. They say that pollution needs to be controlled before the authorities start cracking down on them.
Currently, there are about three thermal power plants, with a capacity of about 1,500 MW, operating in the district. Many more plants are in the pipeline. Fly ash from these plants settles on the salt. The Act says that salt has to be manufactured in such a way that it contains 96 per cent sodium chloride.
“My salt pan lies very close to one of the state-owned thermal power stations. During peak season (May–September), fly ash settles on the salt, which has to be left in the open for evaporation,” says AS Dhanabalan, a salt manufacturer. He adds that he loses 50 bags of salt for every 1,000 bags produced because of the fly ash. “I cannot always assure that the other 1,000 bags are clear of pollutants,” he adds. “Why does the government not ensure a cleaner environment if they demand better quality and high standards for the finished product?” he asks. 
Small players cannot go hi-tech
P K Raman, another salt manufacturer, says small scale manufactures who make up 95 per cent of the salt industry in the district will be the worst hit as they cannot afford high-end technology to refine salt. “The Tuticorin salt industry has many small players and it should be the government's responsibility to protect them,” he adds.
The FSSA passed in 2006 was implemented last year. Under it, every district in the country has a designated officer who will be in-charge of implementation. Jagadish Chandra Bose, the designated officer for Tuticorin district, convened a meeting on December 27 last year to create awareness among the food business operators in the district with regard to the new laws superseding all the previous acts and regulations.
“All food business operators are required to register under the FSSA from street vendors to food processors to manufacturers,” says Bose. In case the annual turnover of an operator is more than Rs 12 lakh, the operator will have to apply for a license under the FSSA, he adds. Bose says that the business operators should not worry about the new policy as there is scope for two warnings before being penalised. 

Oil Reuse - Stomach Cancer

Red-faced Ministry issues corrigenda

Dozens of lapses in grammar, punctuation and spelling besides factual mistakes in the notification of the country’s top food watchdog for Food and Safety and Standards Regulations 2011 issued four months ago has left the Health Ministry red-faced. Not to talk about the utter confusion it created for the stakeholders, particularly the food processing sector.
Two days ago,  the embarrassed Ministry  issued corrigenda in this regard, correcting slew of bloomers in the text of the gazette. But the case  reflects the stark negligence at various levels in the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI).
FSSAI CEO VN Gaur acknowledged the error but said that the notification bombed spectacularly in the printing department. “It’s the printer’s devil.” Talking to The Pioneer, Gaur explained: “Mistakes happened due to the last minute rush after the Law Ministry asked us to split the regulation in seven parts. Despite our best efforts and last minutes changes aiming to accommodate the Law Ministry’s views, there remained technical flaws.”
At the instance of the Law Ministry, the  regulation was split into seven parts. However, the blatant errors in gazette have become a fodder of  ridicule among the stakeholders. “The case speaks volumes about  the casual way of  the government. Also, many in the industry have already purchased the copies of the regulations full with errors from private publishers. Who will foot their bill for such copies?” said a representative from the industry.
For instance, line 37, pg 322 in FSS(food product standards and food additives) regulation, 2011, “Safflower oil” should have been read as “Imported safflower oil” while in pg 315, line 37 and 38 for “Milk   protein (on dry basis) percent by weight (for fruit shrikhand-not less than..6.0)” should be read as milk protein (on dry basis) per cent by weight” and not less than …7” should read “not less than..7 (for fruit shrikhand-not less than..06.”
Similarly “barrey ka tel” has been written as “berry ka tel” while in page 337, line 37 and 38, instead of “it may contain food additives permitted in these regulations and appendices” it is written “no anti-oxidant, synergist, emulsifier or any other substances shall be added except with prior sanction of the Authority.”
Spelling and factual errors are in aplenty in FSS (licensing and registration of food business) regulation, 2011, FSS (packaging and labelling) regulation, 2011, FSS(prohibition and restriction on sales) regulation, 2011, FSS(contaminants, toxins and residues) regulations 2011 and FSS(laboratory and sampling analysis) regulation, 2011.
The  notification was delayed for many months due to one or another reason and  finally put in effect from August 5, 2011. However, the final outcome has been utterly poor, the representative commented.
In fact, if the FSSAI has left the Ministry embarrassed, the later too has failed to give due attention to the former. For the staff starved Authority has no Chairperson for the last few months while Gaur is to retire by February end this year.

Centre picks state for pilot e-project on food licensing

Impressed by its use of technology to ban spurious drugs, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India has chosen Gujarat to launch project for online registration and licensing of food stalls.

The local panipuri larri or the sandwich stall that serves you mouth-watering snacks will no longer be able to get away if it dishes out substandard food.  The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has chosen Gujarat to implement the pilot project for online registration and licensing of food establishments and vendors. This, because the food and drugs administration has already been successful in using technology to seize and ban spurious drugs across the state.

Which means, the state is ready to replicate the same in creating a database for registration and licensing of unlicensed food business operators and clearing the backlog of pending licences. The project is scheduled to begin by the end of February.

Under this project, all the shops selling food items will be registered and issued a licence.

Raghu Gudal and S Murthy, senior officials of the National Institute for Smart Government — a Hyderabad-based central government agency has developed a software for online registration and licensing of food vendors and establishments — met officials of the Food and Drugs Department on December 30 at Gandhinagar. They also met health minister Jaynarayan Vyas.

Last week, the food and drugs control department commissioner Hemant Koshia had been called to New Delhi by the FSSAI to intimate him about their decision to launch the pilot project in Gujarat.

Vyas told Mirror, “Gujarat is ahead of other states in developing an online system to check sale of spurious drugs. The food and drug administration department, through its online system, can locate the medical shop where the spurious drug is available and also record its batch number. The administration can block and seize the drugs by sending an SMS to all medical stores and even issue instructions online. The effective use of technology has prompted the Centre to choose Gujarat for implementation of the pilot project.”

Speaking to Mirror, Koshia said Gujarat was selected for the pilot project because of its computer network and infrastructure. Besides, the state has a ready online database of food establishments. Gujarat also has complete list of food laboratories online and a GSWAN connectivity which is considered the best in the country.

TWO-DAY TRAINING
The implementation of Centre’s pilot project in Gujarat is scheduled to begin by the end of February

As many as 200 food safety officers from across the state will be trained on online registration and licensing of food establishments and vendors during a two-day workshop. In the last week of January, the food and drugs control department will start accumulation and assimilation of data to prepare a database.

The central government has also asked the food and drugs administration to clear the backlog of pending licences by August 5.

The state administration has presently issued 70,000 licences to food business operators that have a turnover of more than Rs 12 lakh annually. There are roughly about two lakh vendors across the state who earn less than Rs 12 lakh annually. These vendors will also be covered under the ambit of registration and licensing.

Koshia said , “The biggest benefit of online registration is that it will speed up the licensing process. The online data will also help keep quality of food provided by vendors under check. Moreover, it will have details like the location and contact numbers of the vendors. Unknown hawkers who are presently not quality conscious will also be registered. The consumer stands to benefit a lot from this new system.”

Executive Summary on National Survey on Milk Adulteration

The National Survey on Milk Adulteration 2011 (snap shot survey) was conducted by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India to ascertain the quality of milk and identify different type of adulteration in the liquid milk throughout the country. The survey was carried out by the Regional Offices of the FSSAI located at Chennai (Southern Region), Mumbai (Western Region), Delhi (Northern Region) , Guwahati, (North Eastern Region) and Kolkata (Eastern Region) with the following objectives:

1. To identify the common adulterants in milk in rural and urban areas of different states.

2. To find out the non conforming samples in loose and packed milk.

The samples were collected randomly and analysed from 33 states namely Andhra Pradesh (75), Arunachal Pradesh (25), Assam (109), Bihar (75), Chhattisgarh (19), Chandigarh (25), Delhi (71), Dadra & Nagar Haveli (12), Daman & Diu (25), Goa (24), Gujarat (100), Haryana (109), Himachal Pradesh (27), Jammu & Kashmir (18), Jharkhand (25), Karnataka (51), Kerala (50), Madhya Pradesh (61), Maharashtra (126), Manipur (25), Mizoram (25), Meghalaya (26), Nagaland (22), Orissa (50), Puducherry (25), Punjab (109), Rajasthan (103), Sikkim (18), Tamil Nadu (74), Tripura (25), Uttarakhand (26), Uttar Pradesh (136), West Bengal (100) totalling to a sample size of 1791.

The samples were sent to the govt. laboratories namely, Department of Food and Drug testing Government of Puducherry, Central Food Laboratory Pune, Food Reasearch and Standardisation Laboratory Ghaziabad, State Public Health Laboratory, Guwahati and Central Food Laboratory Kolkata for testing of samples for the presence of common adulterants such as Fat (%), SNF (%), Neutralizers, Acidity, Hydrogen Peroxide, Sugar, Starch, Glucose, Urea, Salt, Detergent, Skimmed milk powder, Formalin and Vegetable fat .

The total conforming samples to the FSSA standards were 565 (31.5%). The total non-conforming samples were found to be 1226 (68.4%) .

The non-conformity of samples in rural areas were 381(31%) out of which 64 (16.7%) were packet samples and 317 (83.2%) were loose samples respectively and in urban area the total non confirming samples were 845 (68.9%) out of which 282 (33.3%) were packed and 563 (66.6%) were loose samples.

The deviation were found highest for fat (%) and SNF (%) in 574 samples (46.8%) of the total non –conformity . Perhaps the reason may be dilution of milk with water. The second highest parameter of non conformity was the Skim Milk Powder (SMP) in 548 samples (44.69%) which includes presence of glucose in 477 samples. Glucose would have been added to milk probably to enhance SNF. The presence of Skim Milk Powder indicates the reconstitution of milk powder. Detergent was also found in 103 samples (8.4%).

The non-conforming sample in the descending order of percentage with respect to the total sample collected in different states were as follows: Bihar (100%), Chhattisgarh (100%), Daman and Diu (100%), Jharkhand (100%), Orissa (100%), West Bengal (100%), Mizoram (!00%), Manipur (96%), Meghalaya (96%), Tripura (92%), Gujarat (89%), Sikkim (89%), Uttrakhand (88%), Uttar Pradesh (88%), Nagaland (86%), Jammu & Kashmir (83%), Punjab (81%), Rajasthan (76%) Delhi (70%), Haryana (70%), Arunachal Pradesh (68%), Maharashtra (65%), Himachal (59%), Dadra and Nagar Haveli (58%), Assam (55%), Chandigarh (48%), Madhya Pradesh (48%), Kerala (28%), Karnataka (22%), Tamil Nadu (12%), and Andhra Pradesh (6.7%).
All the sample in Goa and Puducherry conformed to the standards.

Conclusion

(1) The study indicates that addition of water to milk is most common adulterant. Addition of water not only reduces the nutritional value of milk but contaminated water may also pose health risk to the consumers.

(2) It also shows that powdered milk is reconstituted to meet the demand of milk supply. All state /UT enforcement authorities may specifically check whether the declaration of new FSSAI rules are being complied to.

(3) The study also indicated the presence of detergent in some cases. Consumption of milk with detergent may cause health hazards and indicates lack of hygiene and sanitation in the milk handling.

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REGISTRATION & LICENSING FORM

Consumption of Kesari dal results in paralysis: Study

HYDERABAD: Consumption of Kesari dal does result in paralysis. This has been found in large animal experiments conducted by the National Institute of Nutrition (NIN) here. Consumption of Kesari dal has been practically banned all over the country since 1961. However, with demands for lifting the ban on Kesari dal being raised, the study was undertaken last year.

The experiments conducted on goats have shown that consumption of Kesari dal can result in lathyrism, a form of paralysis that affects the lower limbs. With such findings, the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) has now constituted a committee that will formulate a plan to undertake human studies. The committee will meet in New Delhi on January 11.

"We have carried out the experiments on goats and in one of the kid goats, there has been a `frank' case of lathyrism," Dr Arjun L Khandare, deputy director, National Institute of Nutrition (NIN) said. The experiments were carried out in association with Osmania University and the Acharya N G Ranga Agricultural University (Angrau) at the instance of the Food Safety Standards Authority of India (FSSAI). The findings of the experiments are important as one Dr Shantilal Kothari, president, Academy of Nutrition Improvement, has been spearheading a movement to get the ban lifted on Kesari dal consumption.

With strong evidence emerging about the affects of consuming Kesari dal, the ICMR has decided that human studies should be done to further verify the findings. The experiments would be conducted in Maharashtra, Chattisgarh and West Bengal where farmers cultivate Kesari dal.

THANE STORM - DISASTROUS PUDUCHERRY - Photos by ME