A healthy plateful of phuchkas

Kolkata's high street food standards are soon going to be the yardstick other states will measure their sidewalk kiosks by. Kolkata's safety standards for its delectable street food - oily Mughlai parathas, jhal muri (puffed rice mixed with vegetables ), hot kathi rolls, phuchkas (gol gappas) and Chowmein (mixed noodles) - have now inspired the Union health ministry to emulate the model across India.

The Kolkata model - an exhaustive landmark study conducted around a decade back helped the finger-licking street food in the City of Joy become safer (and was ultimately emulated by Bangkok also) - was presented in to other states last month by the Food Safety and Standard Authority of India (FSSAI).
According to a recent Union health ministry survey in 16 cities, over 90 per cent of street food was found to be unsafe for consumption. Providing food with less investment and more profit was also found to be the first preference of the vendor rather than meeting the quality and safety requirements.
The FSSAI is therefore thinking on setting up a national coordinating committee that will identify the environmental and contamination risks that street foods face and work towards making them more hygienic.
Street food - a clear favourite with the rich and the poor alike across India, has never received enough attention from the government. For the first time, the FSSAI is looking to create a city-wise action plan on how to make street food safer, more palatable and presentable. FSSAI chairman K Chandramouli told TOI-Crest : "Street food is a clear favourite with everyone. It is our focus now to make it safe. We will finalise a generic street food safety protocol in a month. "
Sources told TOI-Crest that as a pilot project, 56 areas or streets in eight cities (including four metros) will be selected which will be developed as model street food zones. Food commissioners will then identify vendors with the help of the police and develop a protocol after studying the water source being used to make the food, wash the utensils, how the food is being cooked and stored and the garbage disposed. Next, the local municipal commissioner will head a food and water policy council for each area.
Indira Chakravarty, former director of the All India Institute of Hygiene and Public Health who had conducted the highly acclaimed Kolkata study says, "Street food caters to the largest number of people in India. It is not the nutritional content of the street food that is under scrutiny but the hygienic and environmental contamination. The national street food safety plan will work out how to make the police and municipal corporation join hands with street food vendors to make the change sustainable. "
Professor Chakravarty said the Kolkata study examined various hazards to food safety and the environment. "In India, a regulation pertaining to artificial colours lists the approved colours, the foods that can contain them and the amount that can be used. However, vendors were not aware of these regulations. Metanil yellow (a textile colour) had a long history of use as a substitute for saffron. Many users didn't know that it is not permitted. Unauthorised use of food additives was detected in foods like sharbats and jalebis. Various food samples also contained saccharin which is not permitted, " Chakravarty said.
The study also found that the street foods were prone to microbiological contamination. As expected, the standard plate count (SPC is a procedure for estimating the number of live heterotrophic bacteria in water) of samples of lassi, idli and dahi vada was very high. Harmful bacteria like Salmonella or Shigella were detected.
Escherichia coli, chiefly an indicator of faecal contamination, were detected in 55 per cent of the samples tested raising suspicion of improper food handling practices.
The water used for drinking, cooking and washing of fruits and vegetables was found to be contaminated in 47 per cent of the samples analysed.
Some of the suggestions from the Kolkata study included providing a photo identity card for each food hawker, demarcation of pavements for hawking, bins to be provided by the municipality for waste disposal and safe water to be supplied by the corporation for washing, cooking and drinking.
There was also a suggestion that hawkers be provided with bank loans to obtain kiosks. Training was a main component of the street food policy. The Kolkata study provided street food vendors with better knowledge of proper hygienic practices and the use of food additives. "Such training would improve the safety of the foods prepared and sold by vendors, " says Chakravarty.
The Kolkata study was conducted in areas like College Square, Sealdah, Dalhousie Square and Gariahat. A total of 911 consumers were interviewed. As many as 33 per cent of the consumers interviewed purchased street foods on a daily basis, while about 23 per cent patronised the stalls one to four times per week. Consumers spent Rs 40 to Rs 400 per month on street foods, according to their income and tastes.
The nutritional value of the food sold in the streets was assessed by analysing some popular meals. An average 500 g meal contained 20 to 30 g of protein, 12 to 15 g of fat (vegetable fat) and 174 to 183 g of carbohydrate and provided approximately 1000 kcal. The meals cost between Rs 4 and Rs 8. "The analysis indicates that street foods may be the least expensive means of obtaining a nutritionally balanced meal outside the home. At present Kolkata alone will have over 2. 5 lakh vendors and the numbers will keep increasing leaps and bounds, thanks to urban migration and food prices increasing, " adds Chakravarty.
The study also revealed that licensing the street food vendors would appear to be a prerequisite for controlling street foods - taking samples, analysing the food, reporting and taking action as necessary. "We helped street food vendors in Kolkata and Howrah to sell their products in a clean area. Once their hygiene levels went up, so did their sales, " says Chakravarty.

Dairy fined Rs 3 lakh fine for selling unbranded butter

Shimla: A district administration court here today slapped a fine of Rs 3 lakh on M/s. Chanakya Dairy Ltd, Gobindgarh (Punjab) for selling unbranded butter.
Exercising its judicial power, the court of additional district magistrate (ADM) held the dairy guilty of violating food safety laws for a consignment that was withheld by a vigilant municipal corporation official, last year.
Acting of a complaint by Food Safety Officer Ashok Mangla, ADM Naresh Kumar Lath held the dairy guilty of having violated the Food Safety Act, 2009 before pronouncing the fine for the violations made.
The erring diary has been grated 30 days time to deposit the fine.
It was on January 10, 2011 that the food safety officer had apprehended the vehicle carrying the unbranded butter at Kacchighati, a Shimla suburb.

‘Local food manufactures not following mandatory standards’

TURA: The A’chik Youth Welfare Organization (AYWO) has urged the Food Inspector, Tura, West Garo Hills to check and take action regarding the non-existence of appropriate labeling in locally packaged food products of Garo Hills.

AYWO said that, many locally packaged food products, especially bakery products are being sold in the market without any appropriate labeling such as date of manufacture, batch number, expiry dates, maximum retail price etc. which is a crucial decisive necessity for the consumer’s health protection.

“Food is very much a sensitive and risky commodity when it is not handled carefully.”

“Tested packaging material, hygienic processed plant and equipment, hygiene of employees etc, all have to be taken into account because without it, the safety of the consumers is not guaranteed” said Shoshon A Sangma, Anti Corruption Secretary of AYWO.

The Organization also mentioned that the sealing process or packaging method does not meet the standard (recommended) specification of Food Product Order (FPO) and Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) under the aegis of Food Safety and Standard Authority of India.

Sangma said “The food manufacturers are liable (mandatory) to follow the rules and regulation which safeguards the consumer community from food borne diseases and food poisoning”.

AYWO alleged that the Organization has been receiving numerous complaints from consumers and citizens in general against food products being sold in and around Tura and other parts of West Garo Hills without proper packaging and without appropriate labels.

With this end in view, the AYWO has urged the Food Safety Officer, West Garo Hills to direct all the manufacturers operating in his jurisdiction in strongest terms to follow the norms and also to not allow suppliers to import food products from any place to Garo Hills without any proper information labeled on respective goods.

Salt pinch for traders

The East Singhbhum district health department has decided to crack down on retailers and wholesalers selling non-iodised salt from the last week of July.

The decision was taken at a meeting chaired by state nodal officer of National Iodine Deficiency Disorder Control Program Dhananjay Baraik on Friday.

A directive was issued to additional chief medical officer (ACMO) of East Singhbhum Swarn Singh and district food inspector Krishna Prasad Singh to start sensitisation drives to make retailers and wholesalers aware of ways to check iodine content in salt. This is ought to be followed by distribution of special test kit provided by Unicef. Thereafter, the authorities will conduct random inspections to catch retailers and traders dealing in salt with less iodine.

Baraik said Unicef has procured rapid salt test kit from Chennai MBI Kits International, which will be given to traders and merchants for free in the first phase.

"Unicef representatives will teach the salt traders and retailers how to use the kit. We also plan to take help from anganwadi sevikas, who will be trained to use the kit to measure iodine content. Thereafter, we will conduct surprise checks and if iodine level is found to be below the specified limit, samples will be seized and sent to government-recognised labs for tests. If results are positive, licences of the erring trader and retailer will be cancelled," the nodal officer said.

According to the newly formulated Food Safety and Standard Act, the specified limit for iodine content at production centre of salt is 30 PPM (parts per million) and 15 PPM at consumer point (retailer).

ACMO Singh said the sensitisation drive for anganwadi sevikas and salt traders and retailers would begin simultaneously from Saturday. "We have around 1,950 test kit. We plan to start the checking drive at rural and urban areas from July-end," he added.
President of State Salt Merchants' Federation Lalit Maheshwari admitted that the iodine content was below specified limit in privately procured salt as against the branded ones.

"In urban areas, consumption of branded salt is as high as 60 per cent. The problem lies in rural pockets where sale of privately procured salt is as high as 70 per cent mostly because of the cheap rate and ignorance on the part of consumers," said Maheshwari.

There is a price variation of Rs 6-8 per packet.

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Companies may have to back ad claims with proof

NEW DELHI: Companies that promise that their brand of cereals helps in losing weight or their massage oil gives instant relief from that knee pain may soon have to back their claims with stronger evidence to continue with such claims in their ads, or face action in court.

In a bid to protect consumer interest, the consumer affairs ministry has recommended that the government set up an investigative agency that will collect data on claims by companies and advertisers to ensure that they are scientific and not without any basis.

The move follows consultations with the health ministry , the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) and Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) over the last threefour months. Various stakeholders have also suggested that the Centre and state governments also file cases before the consumer courts against companies that make misleading claims. 

 

"To ensure that there is complete transparency and to avoid any moral hazard, we have recommended the creation of some sort of an investigative agency. This wing should be attached to our ministry," a senior official in the consumer affairs department told TOI. The ministry has also sought that a panel of lawyers should be constituted so that appropriate action be taken. And these lawyers will have to be present in the investigative agency, not in a separate panel.

While companies refused to comment, officials said the matter has been discussed with industry representatives and it has not found "full support" as they believe the move will kill creativity. "All companies in any sector, be it financial institutions or FMCG, will come under the ambit," the official said.

Even as self-regulatory advertising body ASCI is authorized to check misleading claims, the government believes there is a need for a stronger body to ensure stringent action is taken. "We are not against self regulation, but this is not the right attitude ," the official added.

FSSAI, which is mandated to take action against misleading claims in the food sector , said there was still some clarity needed if the food sector comes under the ambit. The organization has recommended the strengthening of the existing mechanism instead of constituting a separate body.

"We are just worried that a toothless body like the existing one might be constituted again. Companies say they are already providing evidence . But we have recommended for empowering the legal mechanism under the consumer protection act," an FSSAI official said.

Himachal bans sale of Gutka, Pan Masala, Masheri & Khaini

Shimla: Evoking provisions of Food Safety & Standards Act, 2006, the Himachal Pradesh government on Friday announced a complete ban of sale and distribution of Gutka, Pan Masala, Masheri, Khaini and other such products.Such food products if stored, manufactured or sold in the state would attract strict penal action against the persons and businesses involved, said a government spokesman.
Those found involved would be booked for violating the provisions of food safety act and proceeded against, he added.
The government has also directed state authorities not to register or issue a licenses to food business companies involved in manufacture and trade of these products.
Himachal Pradesh has become one of the first few states in the country to have made sale, distribution of these items illegal in the country.
The food safety law has provisions of imposing fines upto Rs 25000 on selling of products injurious to health.
The hill state has already effectively banned smoking at the public places, for which defaulters are fined.