New tamarind variety turns food colourful, healthier

Scientists showing the ‘Anantha Rudhira’ variety of tamarind, at the Arid Zone Fruits Research Centre. 

Colour extracted from the fruit also brings more income to the farmers

At a time when awareness on using natural products for colouring food and bakery items is high in the country, scientists at the All India Coordinated Research Project on Arid Zone Fruits at Rekulakunta in Anantapur district have come up with a pigment solution that is extracted from ‘Anantha Rudhira’ variety of tamarind.

Anantha Rudhira, developed at the only horticulture research centre on arid fruits for Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, was test-grown and nationally released in February 2018 with the pulp vacuoles having a red non-toxic pigment anthocyanin that is soluble in water.

This variety of tamarind has since been in high demand as in addition to being drought-resistant, it was high-yielding providing farmers good returns from the fourth year of planting the saplings raised at the Rekulakunta experimental farm through grafting from its mother plant, Principal Scientist B. Sreenivasulu told The Hindu.

A research team comprising a pathology scientist P. Deepthi, and horticulture scientist B. Vimala along with Mr. Srinivasulu in the ICAR-supported project have been experimenting on sustainable methods of extraction of anthocyanin that is visible when the tamarind pods are 150 to 160 days. The red colour slowly diminishes as the tamarind matures and pulp begins to soften.

Most suitable planting season/time for these saplings is June-July or January-February and the most demand is from Karnataka, A.P, Telangana and Maharashtra, said Mr. Srinivasulu.

10 value-added products

Anantha Rudhira mother plant developed from its ‘champion’ trees from Panthnagar in Uttar Pradesh and Parbani in Maharashtra that had this pigment characteristic, is being used to grow saplings based on indents (currently 15,000). Not stopping at that, the research team recently developed 10 value-added products based on red anthocyanin – syrup, juice, Toffees, lollypops, squash, bakery items and ‘raw tamarind chatni’ (thokku).

They have been very popular at a couple of exhibitions where they were displayed by the research team, said Ms. Deepthi.

The Anantha Rudhira pods are wide, long and attractive, in addition to giving a high yield of six tonne per hectare against three tonne yielded by normal varieties.

Another variety

A second variety developed at this centre is Thettu Amalika, which enables farmers make higher pulp recovery at 50% compared to 30% in normal varieties. The champion tree was identified at Thettu in Chittoor district and provides ₹20,000 income per hectare from the fifth year of planting, while consumers get a product that has better nutritive value, higher doses of calcium, phosphorus, and vitamin C.

Only these 7 pasta brands have been given green chit by FSSAI after Maggi Mess

New Delhi: Instant noodles and pastas with taste-makers of only seven companies are allowed to be sold in India, the food safety watchdog said on Monday, while also ordering tests on all approved variants and calling for the remaining “illegal” ones to be destroyed. 

The seven companies that have approvals for their variants of instant noodles and pastas with taste-makers are: 

FSSAI Approved Pastas & Noodles Companies Are: 

Ruchi International (Koka) CG Foods (Wai Wai) Glaxosmithkline (Foodles) Nestle (Maggi) AA Nutrition (Yummy) Indo Nisin (Top Ramen) ITC (brand not specified) 

“The safety of all other products in these categories has not been assessed as per the product approval procedures. As such, the same are unauthorized and illegal and cannot be intended for human consumption,” said a letter from the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI). 

Ordering tests on all the approved varieties, the letter written by chief executive Yudhvir Singh Malik to all the commissioners of food safety said that as far as all the remaining food products are concerned, they are advised to “ensure such products are recalled, removed from the market and destroyed.” 

Speaking to IANS, the top food safety officer said tests on Nestle’s Maggi and some other similar products had raised serious health concerns and thus it was thought fit to conduct tests on all similar products for which approvals had been granted. 

Following tests on some samples of Maggi, the watchdog on Friday had ordered the recall of all the nine variants of Maggi pan-India, and had asked Nestle to halt its production and exports. It had also issued a similar order on Nestle’s oats noodles and taste-maker. 

While Nestle continues to contend that its noodles were safe for humans and that the levels of lead were within permissible limits – as opposed to the findings of some tests that purportedly indicated otherwise, several states also became pro-active by issuing their own ban orders. 

“Overseas and local manufacturers would be treated equally. More noodle brands including pasta and macaroni products will also start getting tested this week,” Malik said. 

On being asked if the brand ambassadors could be taken to task, he said: “As of now, we are not considering any action.” 

The regulator also detailed the process involved in the recall of food products. 

“Ideally, consumers should be able to return the product at the retail outlet and get their money back if they have the bill with them. It is also Nestle’s responsibility to let the consumers return their products, if they have kept the bill with them,” he said. 

The regulator also plans to post a list of all approved noodle products on its web site and advise the state authorities to test them. “We understand Delhi, Gujarat and Tamil Nadu have already started testing other brands. We will list all the approved noodle products soon.” 

He further said that Nestle had been asked to give the regulator an update on compliance first after three days and then regularly until the end. “Because we understand that it could take 10 days or more, we will be taking regular progress reports from the company,” Malik said.

Gutkha worth Rs 62 lakh seized in Kashimira

Two men, who have been identified as Tuntun Rampravesh Singh (32) and Himmat Singh Moukh Singh (34), both residents of Nallasopara, were taken into custody.

Bhayandar: In a prize catch for the Food and Drug Authority (FDA) officials, a huge consignment of gutkha worth more than Rs 62 lakh was seized from three parked trucks in Kashimira on Friday.

Two men, who have been identified as Tuntun Rampravesh Singh (32) and Himmat Singh Moukh Singh (34), both residents of Nallasopara, were taken into custody.

However, their other accomplices managed to evade the dragnet and are still at large. Based on a specific tip-off from FDA’s intelligence wing, a local team led by Food Safety officer Deepali Totre, Arvind Khadke and other senior officials spotted the suspicious looking trucks near a petrol pump in the Kajupada area of Kashimira.

All the vehicles were found to be carrying hundreds of gunny bags stashed with sachets of tobacco laced and other banned products. While the market value of the seized consignment has been pegged at Rs 62.30 lakh, a case under the relevant sections of IPC and regulations of the Food Safety and Standards (Prohibition and Restrictions on Sales) Regulations has been registered at the Kashimira police station against six people, including the truck owner and the handlers of the consignment. It may be recalled that the Thane police had seized a consignment of gutkha worth Rs 99 lakh in Mira Road in May 2018.

Although, the authorities have been seizing gutkha and scented tobacco products worth lakhs of rupees in frequently conducted raids, the racket involved in smuggling of banned products into Mumbai and Thane from neighboring states like Gujarat continues unabated. Maharashtra became the first state to ban gutkha in July 2012.