70 coconut oil brands banned

Commissioner of Food Safety Anand Singh has issued orders banning the manufacture, storage, distribution and sale of 70 brands of coconut oil in the State as these have been found to be “substandard” and adulterated with other cheaper oils.

Food Safety officials said here on Tuesday that while none of the prohibited brands were deemed “unsafe for human consumption”, on laboratory testing, these were found to be “not of intended quality” and a clear violation of the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006.

Officials said some brands of coconut oil in the market, while meeting quality norms, were found to be violating labelling norms.

“Coconut oil does not naturally contain trans fats, so making claims on the label that a particular brand does not contain trans fat is a way of misleading consumers,” an official pointed out.

Storage and sale of prohibited brands of coconut oil is a crime which invites penal action, the commissioner has warned retail traders.