Delay in grant of NoC to imported edibles: HC raps officials

The Delhi High Court has lambasted officials of Food Safety and Standards Authority of India for misusing law to extort money

The Delhi High Court has lambasted officials of Food Safety and Standards Authority of India for misusing law to extort money from importers of edible items including chocolates in granting no objection certificates and warned that erring persons will be sent to jail.

Justice Manmohan said FSSAI officers, authorised to test the samples of imported edibles and grant NoCs to customs department to release them to the importers, have been creating "undue hassles" in clearing the food articles and use the law, which is otherwise "good", as a tool to extort money from innocent traders. Expressing dismay over the rise in such incidents, the court warned that it may think of sending the guiltyofficials to jail.

"If a policeman (authorised officers) becomes terrorist and extortionist then who will have faith in him. The FSSAI is not understanding my polite way of dealing the matter. I think one officer has to be sent to jail," the judge said.

"Other day, I was in the mood to send one of the officers behind the bars. Hearing a food and health matter is not good for my health. I just cannot understand why they are are not testing the sample and releasing the same? How these things will be controlled," the judge asked.

The FSS Act has a provision of appointing authorised officers who are empowered to carry out inspection ofimported food and issue a no objection certificate (NoC) or Rejection report (RR) to the Customs departmentleading either release or confiscation of the imported edibles.

The court's observations came during the hearing of the petition of M/s United Distributors Incorporation which had imported a consignment of chocolates from Belgium in January. The firm alleged the consignment has neither been cleared nor been tested by the authorised officers despite a direction that such refrigerated consignment should be tested and cleared within 24 hours.

The court asked the FSSAI to test the consignment and submit the report before it on July 15.

Coca-Cola, Pepsi told to list caffeine as ingredient

FDA sends notices to Coca-Cola and PepsiCo asking them to comply with the regulations within a fortnight

FDA has contended that caffeine must be mentioned in the list of ingredients as “it is not a flavouring agent at all”. Photo: Bloomberg Mumbai: A complaint from a consumer organization has prompted the Maharashtra unit of Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) to send notices to soft drink makers including Coca-Cola and PepsiCo, asking them to list caffeine as an ingredient on the packaging. 

The Maharashtra Food and Drugs Administration’s (FDA) attention was drawn to the matter when the Society for Awareness of Civil Rights complained that although Parle Agro Pvt. Ltd’s Café Cuba mentions “contains caffeine” on its label, the list of ingredients at the back of the can doesn’t mention caffeine. 

On 12 June, FDA impounded at least 90,000 cans of Café Cuba for violating these norms, following which Parle Agro approached the Bombay high court seeking their release. In his plea, Parle Agro’s lawyer Virag Tulzapurkar said that caffeine was used in Café Cuba “as a flavouring agent and, therefore, not required to be mentioned in the list of ingredients”. FDA has contended that caffeine must be mentioned in the list of ingredients as “it is not a flavouring agent at all”. 

“In products which use artificial flavours that give an essence of caffeine, there is still some caffeine content that the product will have. However, if a consumer has large amounts of these products, then it would give a caffeine kick,” said Priya Khanna, a nutritionist practising in Mumbai. In response to Parle’s argument that other carbonated beverage manufacturers also didn’t mention caffeine in the list of ingredients, G. Hariharan, the lawyer representing the government, said that notices have been sent to other aerated drink makers as well. 

A food and safety officer of FDA directly involved in the case confirmed that last week notices were sent to Coca-Cola and PepsiCo asking them to comply with the regulations within a fortnight. “We have recently received a communication from FSSAI regarding certain labelling declarations on Pepsi and Mountain Dew. We are examining the same and will not be able to comment further at this stage,” said a PepsiCo India spokesperson. “We declare ingredients and or additives on our label as applicable under the current regulations and are fully compliant,” said a Coca-Cola India spokesperson, who maintained that the company had not received any notice from the authorities to this effect. 

On Wednesday, the Bombay high court passed an order asking Parle Agro to change the labelling for Café Cuba to reflect whether it contains caffeine or not. The court also asked FDA to release the seized cans of Café Cuba saying that “it is important to note, however, that the respondents (FDA) have not seized the stock of any other manufacturer”. Rajendra Kothari, chief financial officer, Parle Agro, expressed satisfaction with the court’s “reprimand” to FSSAI and FDA. “Seizure of Café Cuba at various locations in Maharashtra has been held invalid and all the stock is ordered to be released,” he said. Soft drinks are not the only target of FSSAI’s newfound zeal for enforcing labelling norms. Last week, 

The Wall Street Journal reported how cases and cases of Scotch whiskey were lying impounded in customs warehouses because they didn’t meet labelling requirements. Arvind Singhal, chairman of management consultancy Technopak Advisors, said: “Consumers don’t really care about the fine print unless the ingredient in question is harmful for them. 

What’s happening in this country right now is that we are going from a situation of zero consideration for consumer education to a situation where the pendulum swings to the other extreme, and regulation seeks to educate the consumer beyond what they want to, and need to, know.” 

According to a report by Business Monitor International, the Indian non-alcoholic beverage market comprising carbonated drinks, juices, bottled water, ready-to-drink tea and coffee, and sports drinks is expected to touch $5.18 billion by 2015.

Coming soon, 'Nano-juice' to unravel the secrets of the human gut

LONDON: A drink will soon unravel secrets of the human gut and help diagnose irritable bowel syndrome, celiac disease, Crohn's disease and other gastrointestinal illnesses Researchers from the University of Buffalo in the US are developing a new imaging technique involving nanoparticles suspended in liquid to form a "Nano-juice" that patients would drink. 

On reaching the small intestine, doctors would strike the nanoparticles with a harmless laser light, providing an unparalleled, non-invasive, real-time view of the organ. 

"Conventional imaging methods show the organ and blockages, but this method allows you to see how the small intestine operates in real time," said Jonathan Lovell, UB assistant professor ofbiomedical engineering. "Better imaging will improve our understanding of these diseases and allow doctors to more effectively care for people suffering from them." 

In laboratory experiments performed with mice, the researchers administered the nano-juice orally. They then used photoacoustic tomography, pulsed laser lights that generate pressure waves which when measured provide a real-time and more nuanced view of the small intestine. 

The researchers plan to continue to refine the technique for human trials and move into other areas of the gastrointestinal tract. 

The average human small intestine is roughly 23 feet long and 1 inch thick. Sandwiched between the stomach and large intestine, it is where much of the digestion and absorption of food takes place. It is also where symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome, celiac disease, Crohn's disease and other gastrointestinal illnesses occur. 

To assess the organ, doctors typically require patients to drink a thick, chalky liquid containing barium. Doctors then use X-rays, magnetic resonance imaging and ultrasounds to assess the organ but these techniques are limited with respect to safety, accessibility and lack of adequate contrast. 

None are highly effective at providing real-time imaging of movement such as peristalsis which is the contraction of muscles that propels food through the small intestine. Dysfunction of these movements may also be side effects of thyroid disorders, diabetes and Parkinson's disease.

Chewing tobacco destroyed

Officials of the Food Safety and Drug Administration department destroyed packets of chewing tobacco worth Rs.2 lakh here on Saturday. According to J. Suguna, Designated Officer for Food Safety and Drug Administration, Madurai district, inspections were conducted in shops across the city.

The officials also seized over 5,000 water pouches without date of manufacture.

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