PUNE:
About 33% of milk samples in Pune division have failed to conform to
standards, says the latest report by the Food and Drug Administration
(FDA).
"Milk is a primary source of nutrition for children. Therefore, it is even more important to keep a strict vigil on adulteration," said office bearers of the Indian Medical Association (IMA).
Of the 217 samples taken for testing from Pune, Kolhapur, Solapur, Satara and Sangli, 60 were found to be substandard and 20 were found unsafe for human consumption.
Solapur tops the list in substandard milk with 23 of 70 milk samples found of low quality. Sangli leads in Pune division in having unsafe milk samples as 11 of the 44 samples were found to be adulterated. Of the 47 samples taken from Pune, 10 were found substandard, but none was found unsafe.
The samples were taken from milk collection centres, tankers, processing units, local dairies and vendors and tested at notified public health laboratories in Pune and Mumbai between April 1 and October 31, this year.
"The milk samples lacked in standards of fat and 'solids not fat' (SNF) as decided by the law. The samples found unsafe were labelled unsafe because there were adulterants found in them like skimmed milk powder, sugar and edible oil which were mixed to enhance appearance and taste," said Shashikant Kekare, joint commissioner (food), FDA, Pune.
The Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, which came into effect on August 5, 2011, looks at various aspects of milk adulteration and divides them into various segments like safe food, food not of the nature or substance or quality demanded, extraneous but harmless matter, misbranded items and unsafe for consumption.
According to the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, unsafe food means an article of food whose name, substance or quality is so affected as to render it injurious to health.
"As per the act, adding a substance directly or as an ingredient which is not permitted is also considered as unsafe. Since, the milk samples in which adulterants like edible oil, sugar and milk powder were found they are labelled as unsafe as per the norms. But these adulterants were not injuries to human health," S S Desai, assistant commissioner (food), FDA, Pune.
The FDA, Pune, has prosecuted 13 people under various provisions of the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 for resorting to adulteration. Quasi-judicial action was taken in the rest of the cases, he added.
A recent study conducted by the Food Safety Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) across 33 states found that milk in the country is adulterated with detergent, fat and even urea, as well as diluting it with water. Across the country, 68.4% of the samples were found to be contaminated.
In urban areas, the number of non-confirming samples were 845 (68.9%) of which 282 (33.3%) were packed and 563 (66.6%) were loose.
The most common adulteration was that of fat and solid not food (SNF), found in 574 (46.8%) of the non-conforming samples. Scientists say this is because of dilution of milk with water. The second highest parameter of non-conformity was skimmed milk powder in 548 samples (44.69%), which includes the presence of glucose in 477 samples. Glucose could have been added to milk, probably to enhance SNF.
How the samples fared
District Milk Samples Drawn Samples found substandard Samples found unsafe
Pune 47 10 00
Satara 29 10 3
Sangli 44 12 11 Kolhapur 27 05 00
Solpaur 70 23 6
Total 217 60 20
"Milk is a primary source of nutrition for children. Therefore, it is even more important to keep a strict vigil on adulteration," said office bearers of the Indian Medical Association (IMA).
Of the 217 samples taken for testing from Pune, Kolhapur, Solapur, Satara and Sangli, 60 were found to be substandard and 20 were found unsafe for human consumption.
Solapur tops the list in substandard milk with 23 of 70 milk samples found of low quality. Sangli leads in Pune division in having unsafe milk samples as 11 of the 44 samples were found to be adulterated. Of the 47 samples taken from Pune, 10 were found substandard, but none was found unsafe.
The samples were taken from milk collection centres, tankers, processing units, local dairies and vendors and tested at notified public health laboratories in Pune and Mumbai between April 1 and October 31, this year.
"The milk samples lacked in standards of fat and 'solids not fat' (SNF) as decided by the law. The samples found unsafe were labelled unsafe because there were adulterants found in them like skimmed milk powder, sugar and edible oil which were mixed to enhance appearance and taste," said Shashikant Kekare, joint commissioner (food), FDA, Pune.
The Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, which came into effect on August 5, 2011, looks at various aspects of milk adulteration and divides them into various segments like safe food, food not of the nature or substance or quality demanded, extraneous but harmless matter, misbranded items and unsafe for consumption.
According to the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, unsafe food means an article of food whose name, substance or quality is so affected as to render it injurious to health.
"As per the act, adding a substance directly or as an ingredient which is not permitted is also considered as unsafe. Since, the milk samples in which adulterants like edible oil, sugar and milk powder were found they are labelled as unsafe as per the norms. But these adulterants were not injuries to human health," S S Desai, assistant commissioner (food), FDA, Pune.
The FDA, Pune, has prosecuted 13 people under various provisions of the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 for resorting to adulteration. Quasi-judicial action was taken in the rest of the cases, he added.
A recent study conducted by the Food Safety Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) across 33 states found that milk in the country is adulterated with detergent, fat and even urea, as well as diluting it with water. Across the country, 68.4% of the samples were found to be contaminated.
In urban areas, the number of non-confirming samples were 845 (68.9%) of which 282 (33.3%) were packed and 563 (66.6%) were loose.
The most common adulteration was that of fat and solid not food (SNF), found in 574 (46.8%) of the non-conforming samples. Scientists say this is because of dilution of milk with water. The second highest parameter of non-conformity was skimmed milk powder in 548 samples (44.69%), which includes the presence of glucose in 477 samples. Glucose could have been added to milk, probably to enhance SNF.
How the samples fared
District Milk Samples Drawn Samples found substandard Samples found unsafe
Pune 47 10 00
Satara 29 10 3
Sangli 44 12 11 Kolhapur 27 05 00
Solpaur 70 23 6
Total 217 60 20
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