May 8, 2018
Govt launches rapid detection kits to detect adulterants in fresh fish
Launching the kit in New Delhi, Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh said, the kit will help in detecting chemicals in the fish. He said continuous ingestion of ammonia and formaldehyde can lead to many health issues including abdominal pain, vomiting, unconsciousness, and sometimes even cause death.
India’s domestic fish market is reported to be selling formaldehyde-adulterated fish, especially in markets located far away from landing centres or production sites.
According to Indian and International regulations, the fresh fish and shellfish should be preserved only by means of ice and use of substances other than ice to maintain quality is a fraudulent practice. Mr Singh said, continuous monitoring of the contaminants in a laboratory is time-consuming and requires expertise but some people use toxic chemicals in the form of contaminated substances.
New norms for labelling food planned
All packaged food with at least 5% content from genetically engineered sources need to be labelled so. Moreover, foods that exceed norms of sugar and fat will need to carry ‘red’ and ‘green’ labels specifying the extent to which they do so, according to draft regulations by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI).
This is the first time that the Centre has laid down guidelines for labelling genetically modified food. Officials say they are awaiting public comments. “This isn’t the final draft. There will be one more version and that will be reviewed for 30 days,” said Pawan Agarwal, CEO, FSSAI.
The government has been contemplating a system for labelling genetically modified foods for atleast 2 years. Current laws, however, prohibit any GM food—unless cleared by the Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee, a Union environment ministry body-- from being sold in India. Through a 2007 notification, the environment ministry had exempted processed foods from this requirement; this has been stayed by the courts. There was also dispute between the FSSAI, a Union health ministry body, and the environment ministry on who checks if a particular food had a GE provenance. “The companies will check the GM content and we will be conduct further testing and checks,” said Agarwal.
The draft also defines safe levels of fat, sugar and salt in processed food. Food packs would have a designated space coloured RED in case the value of energy from total sugar was more than 10 per cent of the total energy (kcal) provided by the 100 g/100 ml of the product; the value of energy (kcal) from trans-fat is more than 1 per cent of the total energy (kcal) provided by the 100 g/100 ml of the product; and total fat or sodium content provided by the 100 g/100 ml of the product is more than certain specified threshold values.
Food regulator wants packaged food labels to display if they contain GM ingredients
The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) also suggests mandatory declaration by packaged food manufacturers about nutritional information such as calories, total fat, trans fat, sugar and salt per serve on the front of the pack.
Since the country has no provision for GM labelling in its regulatory mechanism presently, consumers are clueless whether packaged food items they buy have genetically engineered (GE) ingredients amid ‘unproven’ concerns in certain quarters about adverse affects such transgenic food can have on human health.
The FSSAI had last month released a 42-page draft notice - Food Safety and Standards (Labelling and Display) Regulations, 2018 - making it mandatory to label such food stuffs as “Contains GMO/Ingredients derived from GMO” if such items contain 5% or more GE ingredients.
The authority will notify the provision for implementation after analysing stakeholders’ opinion on the issue.
Pitching for a colour code, the draft proposes that the high fat, sugar and salt will be coloured ‘red’ in case the value of energy from total sugar is more than 10% of the total energy provided by the 100 grams or 100 ml of the product. It has similar provisions for trans-fat and sodium content.
Draft says that the nutritional information may additionally be provided in the form of bar code. The colour coding will make it easier for consumers to know about the nutritional value of food products and help them make choices as per their requirements.
The issue of labelling of food products having GM ingredients has, however, drawn flak from certain quarters. Stakeholders have flagged that the move is inconsistent and ultra vires for FSSAI to issue any regulation on this matter when GM foods itself are not allowed to be sold in India.
Sridhar Radhakrishnan, co-convenor of the Coalition for a GM-Free India, who sent the group’s objections on the draft to the FSSAI told TOI that that the labelling move will, in fact, allow the GM foods to enter food supply chain when it is anyway illegal to sell GM foods in India currently. “We need preventive action at this juncture rather than regulatory action”, he said.
Other experts, however, differ. Chandra Bhushan, deputy director general of the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), said, “The GM labelling is an important step but we need a proper system to check it. We need advanced lab facilities to check whether the food stuffs contain GM ingredients or not”.
Bhushan is, however, critical about the approach of the FSSAI on finer points of the proposed labelling provisions. He said, “It has adopted a ‘reductionist approach’ towards nutrition. It allows a product to display nutrition benefits based on one attribute even if the product is bad on other attributes”.
Sugar industry sees red in FSSAI’s red coding plan
A draft policy issued by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) that mandates displaying a red colour coding on front-of-the-pack labels on packaged food products with high fat, sugar or salt levels has made the country’s sugar sector turn red
The proposed draft Food Safety and Standards (Labelling and Display) Regulations, 2018, are now in public domain for suggestions and feedback before they are notified.
A draft policy issued by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) that mandates displaying a red colour coding on front-of-the-pack labels on packaged food products with high fat, sugar or salt levels has made the country’s sugar sector turn red. For the country’s sugar millers who are already reeling under the impact of falling prices and a piling inventory, this move could come as a major blow since it would imply that consumption of sugar is harmful for health.
Members of the Indian Sugar Mills Association (Isma) and National Federation of Cooperative Sugar Mills, which represent both private and cooperative sugar sectors, plan to meet top FSSAI officials and Union ministers to oppose the draft policy.
In the draft regulations, FSSAI said, “The block(s) of nutrient(s) for “High Fat, Sugar and Salt” (HFSS) food shall be coloured ‘RED’….. in case the value of energy Total 15 (kcal) from total sugar is more than 10% of the total energy (kcal) provided by the 100 g/100 ml of the product; the value of energy (kcal) from trans-fat is more than 1% of the total energy (kcal) provided by the 100 g/100 ml of the product; and total fat or sodium content provided by the 100 g/100 ml of the product is more than the threshold values.” The proposed draft Food Safety and Standards (Labelling and Display) Regulations, 2018, are now in public domain for suggestions and feedback before they are notified.
Isma vice-president Rohit Pawar said representatives of the sugar sector will be meeting top officials to seek rational reasons for the colour coding for sugar.
“A detailed presentation will be made before the authorities. There is no scientific study that proves that consumption of sugar is harmful for health,” Pawar said.
Isma director general Abhinash Verma said the question that would be posed to the authorities is that whether there is any scientific study which proves that consumption of food which has more than 10% sugar is harmful for health.”
“Second, if this has been started taking the Western countries into account, one must remember that per capita consumption of India is barely 20 kg per annum as opposed to 67-68 kg per annum in the US and 55-65 kg in most European nations,” he said. “India’s PCI of sugar has remained flat at nearly 10% at 19-20 kg per annum. Moreover, India is a developing nation with a large populace under the BPL category. Sugar continues to remain the cheapest source of energy for the common man,” Verma pointed out.
Fruits under chemical lens
Jamshedpur: Traders using chemicals to ripen fruits are now under civic scanner.
Special officer of Jamshedpur Notified Area Committee (JNAC) Sanjay Kumar Pandey on Monday said an enforcement squad led by a city manager and assisted by police would conduct raids on leading fruit wholesalers and retailers in the city to prevent the use of chemicals in fruits, particularly mangoes and bananas that are widely consumed in summer.
"We have received complaints that some traders in Bistupur and Sakchi are using calcium carbide to ripen fruits. This is a dangerous trend and can cause health hazards. We have decided to act under Section 322 of the Jharkhand Municipal Act, 2011, that prohibits of sale of diseased animals or adulterated food items. Rigorous inspection will be conducted daily," Pandey said.
Using chemicals such as calcium carbide to artificially ripen fruits is banned under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, and Food Safety and Standards Regulations, 2011. Prevention of Food Adulteration Rule, 1955, too prohibits use of chemicals.
The JNAC officer said they would revoke the trade licence of rogue sellers and levy a spot fine of Rs 1,000, besides seizing the chemical-laced fruits.
East Singhbhum civil surgeon Dr Maheshwar Prasad said the district food safety officer would also be instructed to carry out similar raids.
"Consumption of artificially ripened fruits is harmful for health. It can lead to stomach upsets and damage the neurological system. Calcium carbide, in particular, is known to have carcinogenic properties," said Prasad.
State health joint secretary Chandra Kishore Oraon said instructions would be given to all food safety officers across districts, including Ranchi, to carry out raids against sale of chemically ripened fruits.
"Additional chief medical officers in different districts will monitor the crackdown. We shall send our food testing van to different fruit markets of Ranchi," Oraon added.
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