CONSUMERS BEWARE! The spicy package

A Food Safety and Standards Regulation says powdered spices and condiments can only be sold packed

Ground spices cannot be sold loose

Pushpa Girimaji

I am told that ground spices sold in the market could be adulterated. How do I ensure that they are of good quality and free of adulterants?

Checks conducted by food safety officers in several parts of the country have revealed adulteration of ground spices. But, unfortunately, there has been no comprehensive survey to assess the percentage of such adulteration in the country in recent years.

To buy unadulterated or adulteration – free ground spices, you must know the laws and regulations pertaining to ground spices and choose wisely. You must know that first and foremost, ground spices cannot be sold loose at all. This prohibition was brought about earlier under the Prevention of Food Adulteration Act, to protect consumers from adulterated spices. When the Food Safety and Standards Act replaced the PFA Act, this particular provision was introduced under the new law too. The Food Safety and Standards (Prohibition and Restrictions on Sales) Regulations 2011 mandate that “No person shall sell powdered spices and condiments except under packed conditions” (Regulation 2.3.14 (15)

This means that ground spices come under the Legal Metrology (packaged Commodities) Rules, that require every manufacturer and packer to comply with certain conditions of labelling such as providing the full name and address of the manufacturer or the packer, the date of packaging, best before date, batch number, consumer complaints or care number of the manufacturer, weight of the ingredient and its maximum retail price, etc. In other words, if something is wrong with the spice that you have bought, you know who can be held accountable, as the package gives the name of the manufacturer or the packer.

Again, under the Food Safety and Standards (Licensing and Registration of Food Businesses) Regulations, 2011, all those in the food business will have to be registered or licensed in accordance with the procedure laid down. Such registration means that those preparing or packing food have to comply with certain basic hygiene and safety practices and are subjected to periodic food safety inspections. So when you buy a packaged spice, look for the FSSAI registration or license number. The Food Safety (Packaging and Labelling) Regulations 2011 also ensure that the packaging material is of specified food grade quality and that the packages give the required labelling information including the best before date and the ingredient.

Third, look for the Agmark certification (given under the Agricultural Produce (Grading and Marking) Act, 1937), which is a third-party guarantee for the quality of the ground spice that you are buying. It gives you an assurance that the spice is in accordance with the quality parameters laid under the Agmark Standards. The Spices Grading and Marking Rules, 2012, notified on September 24, 2012,apply to whole or powdered spices such as turmeric, chillies, black pepper, cardamom, large cardamom, coriander, ginger, cumin, fennel, fenugreek, celery seed and cumin black. The Agmark logo will contain the CA number, the name of the ingredient and the grading, which is “standard” or “Special”. When you buy turmeric powder, for example, in a standard grade, the ‘curcuminoid’ content will be 2.0 while in the special grade, it would be 3.0 In short, the Agmark label will ensure that the product is free of adulterants, colouring matter, heavy metals and conform to not just Agmark standards, but also those of FSSAI. Agmark is a voluntary third party certification.

In addition, these days you can get powders from organically grown spices, carrying certificates from international standards bodies. Here, you have to make sure that the claims and the certificates are genuine.

Are there any simple tests to check the purity of ground spices?

Common adulterants in turmeric powder are the yellow dyes lead chromate and metanil yellow. Similarly chilli powder has been found adulterated with the toxic dye sudan red. If you look up the website of FSSAI, you will find instructions on some simple tests for checking adulterants in food. You can follow that. For example, if you add a few drops of concentrated hydrochloric acid to turmeric powder, you will see the instant appearance of violet colour. If this colour does not disappear on dilution with water, but persists, then it indicates the presence of the coal tar dye, metal yellow. While metanil yellow, a red coloured dye is known to be neurotoxic, lead chromate is carcinogenic and also known to damage various organs on prolonged exposure. Sudan red, a red dye, is also toxic and carcinogenic. To detect this dye, add a few drops of water to the chilli powder and the colour comes out in streaks.

I would suggest that you join up with other residents in your locality and tie up with a nearby college that will have a laboratory to assist you in such tests. It may also be a good idea to randomly choose the popular brands in your locality and get them tested occasionally in a nearby laboratory. It will help you assess the brand better-in case the product is adulterated, you need to complain to the food safety officer in your district or State.