Nov 18, 2019
Forbidden fruits: Why artificial ripening can give you a raw deal
Last Wednesday, officials of the food safety department seized 10 tonnes of banana ripened using ethylene solution from the Koyambedu wholesale fruit market. But this was not a one-off case. In the past year, food safety officials have raided shops and seized several tonnes fruits from across the city.
“But that is only a small amount of what is being sold,” said Chennai’s designated food safety official Dr A Ramakrishnan. The sector is unorganised and there aren’t many food inspectors doing checks. In most cases, there are no quick tests that can confirm artificial ripening. “We look for chemicals in the store or go by the vendor's confession,” he said.
Food analysts said they have seen fruits such as melons injected with sugar solution to make them sweeter. Red dyes are injected in guavas.
Since naturally ripened fruits have a shorter shelf life, most suppliers ripen them artificially. “They are picked and transported when raw. Else they become too soft and perish. Some fruits are ripened in rice-bins or under paddy straws. But this can take time and most fruits don’t ripen uniformly. So we use artificial methods,” said S Srinivasan, president of Chennai Fruits Commission Agents Association.
In artificial ripening, the process is controlled to achieve desired characteristics and make the fruit fit for sale. It is considered safe and is permitted by authorities provided safe ripening agents are used. The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India has permitted the use of ethylene gas to ripen some fruits. “Officials say we can pass on the cost to the customer. But we don’t have enough chambers available and we can’t keep the fruit waiting,” said K Gnanasekar, one of the fruit vendors. “That’s when many vendors pick the masala packets,” he said.
‘Masala’ is the nickname given to calcium carbide – a carcinogenic chemical used in making explosives. It generates acetylene gas. FSSAI has banned the use of this chemical to artificially ripen fruits. But vendors pack them in small bundles and leave them in between mangoes, bananas and sapodillas. In February, officials destroyed more than 2000kg of sapodillas and seized 9.5kg of calcium carbide. By May, when the mango season was at its peak, officials seized 4500kg of mangoes from Ashok Nagar and Koyambedu.
Nutritionists say fruits and vegetable provide dietary fibre, folate and vitamins A and C, minerals and antioxidants. But the presence of chemicals renders them useless, almost. “It is important to buy fruits that are seasonal,” said diabetologist Dr V Mohan.
Off-season fruits and vegetables that are not locally available are often kept in cold storage and adulterated. “Chemicals added to fruits to increase shelf life can cause allergies, stomach disorders, kidney diseases and cancer,” said S Radha, a senior nutritionist. “It’s important to pick the right fruit. A fruit that is too sweet and less in flavour may be unsafe,” she said.
CRACKDOWN: Food safety department officials raid a shop selling bananas at Koyambedu wholesale market
Govt-run hostels being renovated, but boarders voice concerns on food quality
Hostels run by the Adi Dravidar and Tribal Welfare Department in the city are getting a facelift, but poor quality food continues to remain an issue for inmates.
These hostels are home to hundreds of students hailing from different parts of Tamil Nadu who are pursuing courses in higher education in various educational institutions at Chennai.
A visit by TOI to various hostels on Sunday found students criticising the food being served for its ‘bland taste’ and the quality of water supplied at the facilities. TOI found that the number of occupants per room exceeds its designated strength —six per room.
“The living conditions are far better after the ongoing renovation work. However, there is no improvement in the quality of food served to us,” Sharma, a second year undergraduate and an inmate of the MC Raja College Boys Hostel in Saidapet said. His peers at the hostel voiced their concern over yellow coloured 'idlis' being served to them, apart from unhygienic drinking water. Inmates of Government College Boys Hostel at Nandanam and Kodambakkam also had similar complaints about food quality.
The Adi Dravidar and Tribal Welfare Department is running 22 hostels in the city, out of which 10 are for women students. According to official sources, about 2,800 inmates are staying in these hostels. “In a bid to keep outsiders away, we have already installed bio-metric scanner at MC Raja College Boys Hostel. There is a proposal to extend it to other hostels,” a department official said. Former inmates, who have completed their education are being evicted from these hostels, the official said.
Sources further said that the hostels are getting renovated at a budget of ₹15 crore. The renovation process at these hostels is in various stages of completion. “We will take steps to improve the quality of rice being served to inmates. A lot of care is being taken to supply clean drinking water... it is subjected to reverse osmosis before being distributed to these hostels,” an official said.
CAUSE FOR CONCERN: The kitchen and the entrace of the MC Raja Govt Hostel in Saidapet in Chennai. Hostel inmates have complained of poor quality of food and water being served
Pesticide restrictions may benefit tea sector
Tea, having chemicals like Ethion, Tetradifon and Triazophos, are denied entry into the US as well.
The move stems from the government’s concerns over the sale of spurious seeds and pesticides and the Pesticides Management Bill would seek to regulate the pesticide sector by fixing prices and setting up a regulatory authority.
At a time when the demand for organic agri products, including tea, is heading northward worldwide, the Centre seems to well set to bring in and pass two long pending bills — the Pesticides Management Bill, that will replace the Insecticides Act, 1968 and the Seeds Management Bill. The move stems from the government’s concerns over the sale of spurious seeds and pesticides and the Pesticides Management Bill would seek to regulate the pesticide sector by fixing prices and setting up a regulatory authority.
In less than a year ago, India lost nearly 26 per cent of its tea business to the US with the US revising its permissible pesticides’ list, and a major portion of Indian orthodox tea, meant for the US exports, getting disqualified for a US entry. Going by the Tea Board of India statistics, Indian tea exports to the US declined by 33 per cent — from 11.68 mkg to 7.84 million kg (mkg), while income from exports to the US during the period was down 26 per cent — from $48.40 mn to $35.97 mn. Mind you that Indian orthodox teas, under normal circumstances, fetch one of its best prices in the US which usually hover around $ 4.60 a kilo. It is more than 50 per cent higher than what a kilo of the average Indian tea sells for every year.
It is not just the US, but the European Commission also defines MRL as the highest level of a pesticide residue that is legally tolerated in or on food or feed when pesticides are applied correctly. While 34 different varieties of chemicals, used in pesticides and for treating the tea leaves are permitted, chemicals like DDT and Lindane are banned in the US. The licence permitting Endosulfan has also expired and is not likely to be renewed. Tea, having chemicals like Ethion, Tetradifon and Triazophos, are denied entry into the US as well.
The Tlabs chain of research laboratories, operated by the Tea Research Association (TRA) has been strictly monitoring tea quality and pesticides residue level under the Foods Safety Standards Authority of India (Fssai). The TRA-operated Tlabs chain has also got Fssai accreditation to do that. These Tlabs operate on both ends to investigate quality of tea according to pesticides parameters in one lab and quality parameters in the other lab. Various quality parameters being monitored by Fssai include pesticide residues, presence of heavy metals, iron fillings and toxic substances.
Tlabs also has collaboration with various industry bodies across the world that deal with tea including Tea & Herbal Infusions Europe, UK, the Iran Tea Association. Significantly, both the UK and Iran are large importers of Indian tea. Indian tea exporters are currently worried over increasingly erratic payments from Iran owing to the banking sanctions imposed by the United States. However, these worries and anxieties notwithstanding, India exported 41 mn kg of tea to Iran in the first eight months of 2019, up from 18 mn kg exported in the first eight months of 2018.
Modern Dairy products inspected for quality by FDA
The FDA officials seized a total of 561 kilogrammes of spurious curd, malai, paneer, and fresh cream collectively worth Rs 1,23,691 on Friday
FDA officials said the food items sold at Modern Dairy violated the norms prescribed by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India and is a serious threat to the public.
In a surprise raid conducted on Friday, the Food And Drug Administration (FDA) Pune seized paneer (cottage cheese), curd and cream from Modern Dairy shop located in Camp area, to inspect for quality.
The FDA officials seized a total of 561 kilogrammes of curd, malai, paneer, and fresh cream collectively worth Rs 1,23,691 on Friday.
According to Food And Drug Administration officials, the products would be inspected for hygiene.
Suresh Deshmukh, joint commissioner, FDA, Pune, said they received a tip-off on which the action was taken
Earlier this month, FDA conducted surprise checks at 100 eateries, creameries, milk establishments across the city. Most of the cases were attributed to unhygienic preparations, usage of acids and other colouring methods.
The officials said that any violations of norms prescribed by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) is a serious threat to the public.
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