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Ban on a brand of spices raises questions of adulteration

The ban on spices of a popular brand in the State has brought the issue of food adulteration to the fore once again.

Though only a few cases of branded products containing adulterants have been registered, the potential health damage these can cause could be bigger due to a wide consumer base.

Three products of the brand in question were banned by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) a few days ago. The packaged powders of coriander, chilly, and turmeric were detected as ‘sub-standard’. Food safety officials conducted checks at various outlets to ensure removal of the product from market, says J.S. George, a senior FSSAI official. The manufacturer will have to prove that corrective measures have been taken, before marketing them again. A penalty has been imposed on the company. Another Kerala-based manufacturer of spices was also involved in a similar case earlier. “Identifying a product as ‘sub-standard’ will only let the manufacturer escape with a penalty. In contrast, if the item is found unsafe, the crime invites severe punishment, including imprisonment.

In most cases of food adulteration, the charges are listed in the former category, allowing the culprits to escape by paying penalty,” an expert in food industry says, on condition of anonymity.

Quite often, sales of fake items bank on consumer ignorance. For instance, dry ‘shell’ is sold as coriander after extracting oil from it, he adds. FSSAI is not keen on eliminating the entrepreneur, but wants to make safe products available, says an FSSAI official, who led raids in Alappuzha in the recent Operation Ruchi.

Samples taken from different outlets were analysed at the laboratory for food analysis in Thiruvananthapuram, before action.