Be tough on adulteration

A multi-pronged approach, involving police, medical and health, and agriculture departments, is needed to win the war on adulteration

Food adulteration is no less a crime than an act of terrorism. The perpetrators play havoc with public health and deliberately put the lives of innocent people at grave risk. Such elements must be curbed with an iron hand and given exemplary punishment. Adulteration of food items, including milk, rice and oils, and sale of spurious seeds and fertilizers is an alarming trend that must be checked without any prevarication. Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao’s unambiguous direction to the authorities on curbing adulteration is commendable. While ordering a crackdown against adulteration of food items and sale of spurious seeds and fertilizers, the Chief Minister has rightly highlighted his government’s readiness to amend the existing laws to ensure swift and stringent punishment for those indulging in adulteration. His tough talking on the issue should send right signals across the State. The police must pull up their socks and go after the unscrupulous elements without any mercy. Farmers are suffering huge losses on account of spurious seeds and fertilizers. India’s food system is largely unorganised and highly fragmented with large-scale procurement, distribution and retail sales. The task of regulators becomes very challenging because of insufficient number of laboratories and manpower to test food standards. Since adulteration of food comes under the Concurrent List, the Centre and State governments must work in tandem to maintain safety standards. More teeth need to be added to the Food Safety and Standards Act of 2006 keeping in view the changing technologies.

While making the anti-adulteration provisions more stringent, there is a need for substantial public investments to expand and increase the quality of storage, handling and transportation infrastructure. The private sector should also be encouraged to establish food testing laboratories. This would go a long way in ensuring that the products are within the safety limits. There is a need for Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), an autonomous food regulator, to take up public awareness programmes. A multi-pronged approach, involving police, medical and health, and agriculture departments, needs to be adopted. DNA-based methods can be used extensively to detect food adulterants. Deterrent punishment for food adulterators holds key to curbing this menace. The Law Commission has recommended amendments to the Indian Penal Code to provide harsher punishment in such cases. Currently, sections 272 and 273 of the IPC which deal with ‘Adulteration of food or drink intended for sale’ and ‘Sale of noxious food or drink’ lay down imprisonment up to six months and a fine extending up to Rs 1,000 for both offences. The Commission has recommended life imprisonment and a hefty fine for those convicted of adulterating food items.

Don't drink liquid nitrogen. You'll end up with a hole in your stomach

A 30-year-old man from Delhi, who downed a fancy 'smoking' shot knows better now.

Don’t drink liquid nitrogen. It’s pretty bad for your health. Well, that’s pretty obvious but in case you need proof, just ask this man from Delhi whose stomach now has a hole, thanks to liquid nitrogen.

According to a report in Hindustan Times, two months ago, a 30-year-old who downed a fancy “smoking” shot did not realise that the drink was to be consumed only after the smoke dissipated. In fact, he consumed two.

Just after consuming the drink the man began to experience extreme pain in his stomach accompanied by breathlessness, and had to be immediately rushed to a hospital in Gurgaon.

Upon examining the man, the doctors decided that surgery was necessary and once they opened him up, they realised the extent of the damage caused. According to the report, his stomach “was open like a book”.

The man, who wished to remain anonymous, was quoted by HT saying, “I gulped down the drink, I started feeling very uncomfortable, like how you feel when there is an acid reflux. The bartender passed me another drink and I had it, not thinking too much about the discomfort. However, within seconds, my stomach started swelling and I was in unbearable pain. Breathing was also difficult.”

How did this happen?

The drink that he had consumed was covered with liquid nitrogen. Why? Liquid nitrogen has a boiling point of -196 degrees Celsius. Hence it is used for a variety of things, such as a coolant for computers, in medicine to remove unwanted skin, warts and pre-cancerous cells, and in cryogenics, where scientists study the effect of very cold temperatures on materials. But apart from all the medical and scientific uses, liquid nitrogen has also become a popular gastronomic tool.

Restaurants and bars use liquid nitrogen as a method for instantly freezing food and drinks, or creating and clouds of vapour or fog when exposed to air. Of course, caution should be maintained. When used to freeze drinks, these should only be consumed after the nitrogen has completely evaporated.

According to John Emsley of the Royal Society of Chemistry in England, "If you drank more than a few drops of liquid nitrogen, certainly a teaspoon, it would freeze, and become solid and brittle like glass. Imagine if that happened in the alimentary canal or the stomach. The liquid also quickly picks up heat, boils and becomes a gas, which could cause damage such as perforations or cause a stomach to burst."

While the use of liquid nitrogen is permitted as an additive in frozen food as per the guidelines of the national regulatory body Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), there are no definitive guidelines set for it, especially in terms of safety. 

“There is no clear-cut guideline for it and generally it is considered to be a novel technique, which can be used by food business operators,” said Dr Saurabh Arora of FoodSafetyHelpline.

The aftermath

The patient, when he was admitted, had an abnormally swollen stomach, and his heart rate, blood pressure, and oxygen saturation were well away from optimum conditions. Surgery revealed a huge perforation in the middle and the lower parts of the man’s stomach. Since it was not possible to stitch it back, as the tissue near the tear was too damaged, the doctors removed the damaged portion of the stomach and connected his stomach to the remaining part of the small intestine.

Post the surgery, the patient had to be kept on a ventilator for three days, but thankfully he has since recovered. 

“Consuming liquid nitrogen can cause havoc in a person’s system. By nature, liquid nitrogen expands manifolds and evaporates when left at room temperature. The gas did not have an escape route after the person consumed it and the sphincter closed, this is what led to a perforation in his stomach,” said Dr Amit Deepta Goswami of Columbia Asia Hospital in Gurgaon, where the man was taken to.

Moral of the story: be careful what you put in your mouth. You never know what might happen.

Beware of ‘smoky’ drinks: How safe is liquid nitrogen?

Liquid nitrogen is used to freeze desserts and make fancy cocktails, but a Delhi man ended up with a hole in his stomach after consuming it. Is it really safe?

A nitrogen-chilled drink at a bar in Gurgaon left a Delhi man with a perforated stomach.

It gives your drink a ‘cauldron’ look and your ice-cream an instant magical freeze.

From cold chaats to freeze-dried fruits molecular gastronomy chefs use liquid nitrogen to create such dramatic treats. Not many, however, know that it could be potentially dangerous.

One such nitrogen-chilled cocktail left a Delhi man with a hole in his stomach. He was rushed to a hospital emergency and underwent a major surgery where the damaged parts of his stomach had to be removed and attached to the small intestines.

However, this was not an isolated case. Instances of people ending up in a hospital after consuming liquid nitrogen have been reported from the United Kingdom too. In 2012, an 18-year-old British teenager underwent an emergency gastrectomy after drinking a Jagermeister cocktail.

Here is all you need to know about it:

What is liquid nitrogen?

It is nothing but cooled, liquefied form of nitrogen gas. It is so cold that its boiling point is -195.8 degree Celsius. It can instantly freeze anything that it comes in contact with while evaporating.

Is liquid nitrogen safe?

Liquid nitrogen is often used to instantly freeze foods and is safe when handled properly. “Any food that uses liquid nitrogen should be had after all the gas has completely evaporated,” said Dr Saurabh Arora, foodsafetyhelpline.com, a website which helps people understand the rules and regulations governing food safety. He also heads food testing laboratories in Delhi, Baddi and Bangalore.

“The drink should not be bubbling when a person consumes it, as this indicates that there is still nitrogen gas in it. The white smoke-like vapour, however, is no problem as it forms due to the moisture around after the gas has evaporated and cooled the drink around,” he added.

What happens if you consume liquid nitrogen?

Liquid nitrogen is a colourless liquid and though it is used by chefs to create instant freeze, it cannot be seen as a food item. “Liquid nitrogen is so cold that it can give instant frostbite and when ingested it can damage tissues in the oesophagus and the stomach,” said Dr Mriganka S Sharma, surgeon at Columbia Asia hospital.

It also has a large expansion ratio of 1:694 at 20 degree Celsius. This means that one litre of liquid nitrogen can expand to 694 litres of nitrogen gas at 20 degree Celsius . “As little as one spoon of liquid can expand to more than 600 spoons of gas. Once consumed, the gas does not have an escape route and this can lead to a perforation or a hole in the stomach,” said Dr Amit Deepta Goswami, who treated the Delhi man and a consultant of bariatric and minimal invasive surgery at Columbia Asia Hospital, Gurgaon.

Are there regulations governing the use of liquid nitrogen?

Liquid nitrogen is permitted as an additive in frozen food as per the guidelines of the national regulatory body Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI). “However, when it comes to the use of liquid nitrogen it is a gray area. There is no clear-cut guideline for it and generally it is considered to be a novel technique, which can be used by food business operators,” said Dr Arora.

Check adulteration of sago: farmers

Sago unit owners should be included in vigilance committees

A plea to the district administration to take effective steps for checking adulteration in sago manufacturing process was made at the farmers grievances redress day meeting held here on Friday.

M. Asia Mariam, District Collector, presided over the meeting.

K. Sundaram, general secretary of the Tamilaga Vivasayigal Sangam raised this issue and alleged that makka cholam flour is used in the preparation of sago. The government should take effective steps to check this adulteration by setting up vigilance committees in the district.

The farmers representatives and sago unit owners too should be included in the vigilance committees. He also pleaded for awareness meetings to check this illegal practice.

Mr. Sundaram said that the government should issue a GO that sago should be prepared only after peeling the skin from tapioca root. The officials of the Food Safety and Drug Administration Department should conduct surprise checks regularly in these mills and initiate stringent action against the erring mills.

The farmers representatives also pleaded for a survey for identifying the organic farmers in the district and impart specialised training to them, besides extending adequate subsidy linked financial assistance.

Such an initiative will go a long in promoting the interest of organic farmers and also in maintaining sustainability, enhancement of soil fertility and biological diversity and in prohibiting synthetic pesticides and fertilizers, and antibiotics.

Some farmers took exception to the presence of a sand quarry in River Cauvery bed near Mohanur, despite the stiff opposition by the local people and farming community.

The continuance of the quarry will badly affect the farm operation and drinking water sources.

The farmers and other sections of the society have already organised various agitations to express their opposition to this quarry. The government should at once close this quarry, they added.

There is still confusion on the issue of getting permission for the lifting of silt free of cost from the dry beds of water bodies in the district. The farmers are still not aware on whom to approach for submitting their applications and getting permission. They also sought clarification from the authorities whether the farmers were entitled to lift the silt only from their respective villages.

Ms. Asia Mariam said that farmers should submit their application for lifting to the tahsildar through the VAO. The concerned tahsildar will take decision based on prevailing circumstances on according permission for the lifting of silt in the water bodies of other villages.

The animal husbandry department is providing fodder at subsidised rate to all the farmers who have registered for the same. The district is expected about 100 tonnes of dry fodder soon, the Collector added.

Godown sealed

In a joint raid conducted by the Tamil Nadu Food Safety and Drug Administration Department and the corporation, officials found Rs. 5.70 lakh banned pan masala items stocked in godown in Shevapet here. Recently, the police arrested a gang that was involved in intercepting a lorry carrying pan masala and gutka items. 

Though four persons were arrested, the goods cannot be recovered. It is said that the goods were stocked in a godown in Shevapet. Officials raided the godown and found the banned items. Samples were taken and sent for laboratory tests in Chennai. The godown was sealed by the officials.

DINAKARAN NEWS

ரூ.12 லட்சம் மதிப்பிலான பான்மசாலா குட்கா பறிமுதல்

சேலம்: சேலத்தில், 12 லட்சம் ரூபாய் மதிப்பிலான பான்மசாலா குட்கா, பறிமுதல் செய்யப்பட்டது. சேலம் உணவு பாதுகாப்பு நியமன அலுவலர் மாரியப்பன் தலைமையிலான குழுவினர், நேற்று மதியம், 2:00 மணிக்கு, செவ்வாய்பேட்டை, பால்மார்க்கெட், ஜெயந்தி ஏஜென்ஸி குடோனில், சோதனை மேற்கொண்டனர். அப்போது, 400 கிலோ எடைகொண்ட, தடை செய்யப்பட்ட பான் மசாலா குட்கா பதுக்கி வைத்தது தெரிந்தது. அதில், நிக்கோடின் கலந்திருப்பது தெரிந்து, பறிமுதல் செய்து, குடோனுக்கு 'சீல்' வைக்கப்பட்டது. மாரியப்பன் கூறுகையில், ''ஜெயந்தி ஏஜென்ஸி குடோனில், ஏற்கனவே, ஐந்து லட்சம் ரூபாய் மதிப்பிலான பொருட்கள் பறிமுதல் செய்யப்பட்டது. அனைத்தையும் மாதிரி எடுத்து அனுப்பி உள்ளோம். பரிசோதனை முடிவு வந்ததும், வழக்குபதிந்து, மேல் நடவடிக்கை தொடரும்,'' என்றார்.