FOOD SAFETY LATEST

May 11, 2017

FSSAI finalizes draft norms for third-party audits at food firms

FSSAI has finalised the draft regulation for a ‘systematic and functionally independent examination’ aiming to ensure food safety at the point of origin

Auditing will have to procure necessary accreditation from specified accreditation bodies for each of the food categories, as defined by the regulator, to conduct these audits.

New Delhi: Companies making food products—packaged or otherwise—will soon have to get their facilities and processes inspected by third party auditors regularly as a mandatory exercise. The country’s food regulator Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has finalised the draft regulation for a “systematic and functionally independent examination” aiming to ensure food safety at the point of origin.

FSSAI has already notified the draft regulations on its website and a final notification will come after the regulator reviews suggestions, views and comments from members of the Technical Barriers to Trade committee of the World Trade Organisation (WTO-TBT) over the next two months.

“We’ll have third party auditors to audit the premises and certify that appropriate food safety management practices are being followed. We’ll make it mandatory for large scale food businesses initially,” FSSAI chief executive officer Pawan Kumar Agarwal said.

Some food companies in India voluntarily hire laboratories to inspect safety of their products but it is not mandatory yet. Such audits are common in most developed countries where self-regulation is the norm.

According to the proposed regulations, there would be a recognised auditor and agency that would analyse the risk and undertake an audit to examine if there’s compliance with the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006. FSSAI, along with the Quality Council of India (QCI), the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) and Export Inspection Council of India, will form a committee to evaluate the auditing agency and auditors.

The regulations will have detailed rules on what the auditors should examine and how. “The Authority, from time to time, would declare the categories or types of food businesses which will be subject to mandatory third-party auditing, primarily based on their risk classification,” the draft noted.

Auditing will have to procure necessary accreditation from specified accreditation bodies for each of the food categories, as defined by the regulator, to conduct these audits.

Audit monitoring mechanism will include review of audit reports and performance, on-site assessment of the food safety auditors to ensure competency of auditing food safety management systems and regulatory requirements.

Auditors and food business operators will have to maintain records of audit reports, actions and rectification measures for a period of five years, according to the draft regulation.

Maintain hygiene while cooking Haleem: GHMC

HYDERABAD: With the holy month of Ramzan now barely 20 days away, the GHMC on Tuesday issued instructions to all hoteliers about the norms that they need to follow while preparing Haleem. Hoteliers were strictly told to place the Haleem bhatti (the set up to prepare Haleem) only on the ground floor and instructed them to procure stamped meat alone.

The meeting with several hoteliers was held at the GHMC headquarters and chaired by civic chief B Janardhan Reddy. "Ensuring hygienic food to people is our prime motto, we don't want to penalise anyone," said an official from the health and sanitation wing of GHMC. Apart from places where Haleem wil be prepared, even eateries selling the finished product should maintain hygienic conditions, officials said while also directing them to be well equipped with fire safety machinery in case of an emergency.

The hoteliers were also asked to dispose the waste, according to the civic norms, and instructed to cooperate with GHMC officials during inspections. "All the utensils made of copper should be coated with nickel to prevent food poisoning. There should be proper ventilation with adequate exhaust fans in the kitchens where Haleem is made, to ensure the safety and health of the workers," officials said. These safety measures were welcomed by food enthusiasts in the city who appealed to the civic authorities to regularly inspect the stalls selling Haleem.

"It's a good move as hygienic food is our right. In fact for most people price is not a concern if the food that is being sold is hygienic. It is therefore important that these eateries are continuously monitored so that they do not let their standards drop," said Abdul Adil a foodie from the city.

Apart from well-ventilated kitchens, GHMC officials also instructed hoteliers to provide clean clothing, masks and head caps to the staffers preparing Haleem all through the holy month.

It may be recalled that when GHMC teams inspected eateries during April, unstamped meat, preserving stale food, unhygienic kitchens and unsanitary conditions were among the common violations found plaguing eateries or restaurants in the city.

May 10, 2017

FAT TAX

BAN ADS, RAISE TAX ON FAST FOOD: PANEL

DINAKARAN NEWS

DINAMANI NEWS

DINAKARAN NEWS

Ban ads, raise tax on fast food: FSSAI panel

CHENNAI: Concerned by the increasing burden of lifestyle conditions like diabetes, cardiovascular diseases and hypertension, an expert committee set up by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has recommended a slew of measures including banning junk food ads on children’s channels and during kids’ shows, additional tax and clear labelling of contents and ingredients.

The report ‘Consumption of fat, sugar and salt (FSS) & its health effects on Indian population’ prepared by the 11-member expert committee also suggested ways to reduce consumption of unhealthy food products, noting that over half of all deaths in the country were due to non-communicable diseases. The FSSAI had constituted the committee to address this issue of high FSS content in food and associated health risks.

In its report, the committee recommended a ban on advertisements on foods with high FSS on children’s channels or shows. Such bans exist in smaller countries like Chile. Celebrity endorsements of such foods should be discouraged, and the online and social media should be sensitised to comply with this advertising ban. It also recommended imposition of additional tax on sugar-sweetened beverages and ultra-processed food (ready-to-eat and ready-to-heat-and-eat foods) to reduce the intake of pre-packaged foods and beverages.

The other recommendations include positive nutritional labelling which plays an important role in creating awareness on healthier food choices. The labelling information should be made mandatory for total calories, the amount of carbohydrate, sugars, fat, protein, sodium, dietary fibre and amount of trans-fat added, experts observed.

The FSSAI scientific committee has approved the comments and suggestions put forth by the panel. Experts were called from the fields of medicine, nutrition, dietetics from renowned medical research and academic institutions, which was prompted by a related direction from the Delhi High Court on wholesome and nutritious food for children.

It is indeed time that attention is turned to high fat, salt and sugar content in food. Though the country has millions living in conditions that make them susceptible to the many communicable diseases, it is diseases and conditions like diabetes, hypertension and cardiovascular diseases that account for as much as 53 per cent of all deaths in India. A high intake of saturated and trans-fats, sugar and salt are known to significantly increase the risk of chronic diseases.

According to estimates, the number of such deaths is expected to touch eight million by 2020 — an alarming 100 per cent rise from what it was just two decades ago. “Adverse health effect of consumption of fast or junk food which have a high content of fats, sugar and salt, on consumers, particularly in young children, has become a cause of concern,” the note on the committee report pointed out.

For this, however, the committee had to literally start from scratch. As the Food Safety and Standards Act of 2006 does not define the term ‘junk food’, the committee defined it as foods like pizza, burgers and soft drinks, and snacks like samosas and pakoras.

Fats

Fats should be largely consumed in the unsaturated fat or fatty acid (of which there is one or more double bond in the fatty acid chain) form.

Salt

Excess sodium intake is an important determinant of hypertension and cardiovascular risk. According to WHO and ICMR, salt should be restricted to about 5-6 gm per day.

Sugar

A total of 10 per cent of total energy is allowed as added sugars in daily diet. Simple sugars and refined carbohydrates should be reduced.

The expert committee analysed various studies on fats, sugar and salt consumption pattern in India and its effects on health. The studies showed consumption of these in the Indian population is high.

Junk in the trunk

It’s common knowledge that non-communicable diseases and cardiovascular illnesses are on the rise. Even though the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, doesn’t define junk or fast food per se, these have a high content of saturated fats, trans fats, sugar and salt. Thus, an 11-member expert FSSAI panel has come up with eight recommendations to protect children from such consequences...

1. Guidelines

a) Fats: Monounsaturated/polyunsaturated fatty acids and low-fat dairy products should be consumed every day. Bakery goods, which contain partially hydrogenated vegetable oil, and deep fried foods need to be restricted.

b) Sugar: Consumption of complex carbohydrates and natural sugar found naturally in fruits and vegetables should be encouraged. However, the intake of simple sugar in sweetened beverages and processed snacks should be limited.

c) Salt: Presence of natural potassium in inexpensive, seasonal and locally available fresh fruits and vegetables improve sodium potassium ratio upon eating. Salt rich foods like snacks, pickles are to be avoided.

2. Monitor: Periodic monitoring of FSS intake at national level to get evidence and establishing regulatory limits.

3. Ban: Adverts about foods with high FSS should not be shown on children’s channels or during kids shows. Celebrity endorsements should be discouraged and social media websites should not promote any FFS content.

4. Additional tax: Ultra-processed commodities and sugar-sweetened beverages should have additional taxes slapped on them. It could help reduce FFS intake.

5. Awareness: The multifaceted approach should be utilised by bringing nutrition, agriculture, food industries, health and allied sectors into the loop. That way, public health campaigns and school education programmes can raise consumer awareness.

6. Reformulation: Industry should be encouraged to opt for food reformulation to reduce FFS content in packaged products.

7. Label: Positive nutritional labelling plays a big part in setting trends, so information with regard to total calories, food value, FFS amount should be mandatory.

8. Enable: A nutrition-sensitive environment, with health, agriculture and food sectors in sync, will encourage the consumer to switch to better patterns.

India’s food safety regulator wants higher tax on packaged food, sweetened drinks

The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) also wants a blanket ban on advertising of junk foods and beverages on children’s channels and content for children across television, websites and social media.

Packaged junk food may soon cost more with India’s top food regulatory authority recommending additional tax on processed food and sugar-sweetened beverages.

Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) also wants a blanket ban on advertising of junk foods and beverages on children’s channels and content for children across television, websites and social media.

“Imposing additional tax on the purchase of commodities such as pre-packaged foods with high salt and fat content, sugar sweetened beveragesetc can be a pragmatic approach to reduce their intake,” said the FSSAI’s report on ‘Consumption of Fat, Sugar and Salt (FSS) and its health effects on India’s population’.

“Advertisement ban for foods high in FSS during children TV shows or kids TV channels is urged. In fact, we should progress towards a total ban law as being done in a few other countries like Chile,” recommended the 11 members panel of experts from medicine, nutrition, dietetics and medical research in the report, which suggests ways to cut unhealthy food consumption and lower the rising burden of lifestyle diseases, such as diabetes and heart disease.

The report suggests celebrity endorsements of unhealthy foods discouraged and recommends having a balanced diet with around 60-70 per cent of total calories from carbohydrates, 10-12 per cent from protein and 20-30 per cent from fat.

Higher tax on unhealthy food and beverages has been a longstanding demand of public health experts. “Modelling studies on how eating less junk food lowers obesity and risk of lifestyle disease such as diabetes, heart disease, and chronic kidney disease, which affect Indians at a younger age than other ethnicities. India must consider taxation on unhealthy foods, restrictions on advertising and appropriate labelling of food to lower consumption across socio-economic groups,” said Dr Anoop Misra, chairman, Fortis C-DOC centres for diabetes, metabolic diseases and endocrinology.

“The money from additional tax on unhealthy foods can be used promote nutrition education in schools and the community,” said Dr Misra, who made these recommendations in a paper for British Medical Journal.

It recommends all food labels must carry total calories, amount of carbohydrates, sugar, fat, protein, sodium, dietary fibre and trans-fat. “A total of 10 per cent of total energy is allowed as added sugars in our daily diet. Simple sugars and refined carbohydrates should be reduced. These come largely from sugar sweetened beverages and processed snacks with high added sugar content,” the report said.

It recommends fats in the form of unsaturated fatty acids (oils that do not solidify at room temperature), especially the long chain mono- and poly unsaturated-fatty acids, should be encouraged in everyday diets was among the recommendations.

The report will be a guideline document for all the stakeholders, including the FSSAI, industry and consumers, in reducing consumption of fat, sugar and salt through processed food products.

New packaged food labelling norms for more transparency on salt, sugar & fat content

NEW DELHI, MAY 9:

The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) is finalising new labelling norms for packaged food companies, which is expected to include provisions to ensure more transparency on sodium, sugar and saturated fat content in processed food.Expert group suggestions

The new norms will incorporate recommendations of an expert group which has proposed positive nutritional labelling and has proposed making it mandatory for packaged food companies to disclose total calories/energy value, amount of carbohydrates, sugar, fat, protein and sodium on their labels.

The expert group was constituted by FSSAI in 2015 to provide recommendations on various issues, including labelling requirements for packaged food and regulatory limits for fat, sugar and salt in processed food among others.

The expert group has made several recommendations such as banning advertising of food high in fat, salt and sugar on children television channels or during children shows. It has also suggested that celebrity endorsements of such foods should be discouraged. It has also recommended imposition of additional tax on packaged foods with high salt, high sugar and high fat content.

When contacted, Pawan Agarwal, CEO, FSSAI, told BusinessLine: “These are wide-ranging recommendations that require action by various stakeholders. The recommendations will be incorporated in the new labelling regulations, which we are in the process of finalising. The Authority will be taking up the labelling regulations in its meeting this month, which will then be sent to the government as part of the due process.”

On its website, FSSAI said the expert group’s report serves as a guideline document for all the stakeholders, including the industry, the FSSAI and consumers, in reducing consumption of fat, sugar and salt through processed food products. After the report was approved by the scientific committee of FSSAI, it has been put in the public domain by the regulator.

Other recommendations include encouraging industry for voluntary reformulation of food products to reduce the content of saturated fats,sugar and salt in packaged food. It has also recommended periodic monitoring of fat, salt and sugar intakes at national level.

FDA purchases Rs 70 lakh new modern equipment and machines for food testing

The Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) was testing food and drugs samples with decades old equipments and machines for the last several years. But, now it will test with new equipments and machines. Besides, the new machines and equipments will give quick results and the adulterators might not be spared of the Government trap. Every month more than 200 samples are collected at the city FDA Central Food Testing Lab and due to ages old equipments and machines, the testing results were not perfect and were many times challenged by the traders and even most traders won legal cases against them by the FDA officers.

“When the new food safety law was enacted in the country, the Government of India had directed to all FDAs in states to be well equipped to tighten noose over the adulterators. So it is mandatory to have proper field and lab staff besides the machines and equipments with its update version, said a senior officer in FDA.

Sources said however, the new testing equipments and machines were purchased but the FDA has shortage of technical staff due to which it finds shortage of technicians to operate these equipments. Nobody knows when the FDA will get about 100 food and drugs inspectors and technical staff to test foods and drugs samples at the Central Lab.

In another food and drugs testing labs of the FDA, the equipments and machines are too old, when the technicians many times test a sample, then they can get result near to perfection but not perfect. Staff crunch is another problems in Indore and other cities. So most samples are sent by the district FDA officers to State Capital’s Central Food and Drugs Testing lab and they are piles of food and drugs samples collected by the Food Safety Officers. On the other hand, the food safety officers, its lower staff and technical staff are also retiring every year, creating more vacancies in the Food and Drugs Administration.

It is learnt that, FDA officers are understood to have planned to purchase modern food and drugs testing equipments and machines to its other districts labs also. The technical staff and food inspectors will be for all districts, particularly where there are only one are two food safety officers and more food and drugs shops.

When contacted Pramod Shukla, Joint Controller, Foods and Drugs Controller, said modern equipments and machines to test food and drugs samples costing Rs 70 lakhs were purchased. It gives fast and perfect results. We will soon recruit food inspectors and technical staff for lab, he said.

Apply online for food safety licences

Business operators can apply for food safety licences online or through e-service centres.

According to a Tamil Nadu Food Safety and Drug Administration Department press release operators can apply for licences on www.fssai.gov.in or through the e-service centres.

Public can lodge complaints about food products at the WhatsApp number, 94440 42322, a press release said.

Food safety department cracks down on unhygienic drinking water

CHENNAI: Cracking the whip on supply of unsafe drinking water, the state's food safety officials have seized around 260 unhygienic and unlabeled water cans in the city in three days.

The drive began on Friday with four teams of officials from the department of food safety and drug administration being posted in and around Koyambedu, which is a gateway for units to ferry water cans from Tiruvallur district into the city. Fifteen vehicles were intercepted and 80 cans seized for having no labels. Water in around 30 containers was found to be unfit for consumption while some cans had other manufacturing issues.

On Monday, the department undertook similar inspections in Koyambedu, Egmore, Saligramam and Korukkupet and seized 106 cans after stopping 29 vehicles."In the coming days, we will conduct raids at retail shops and other units that sell water," said R Kathiravan, designated food safety officer for Chennai.

The inspection comes close on the heels of a similar drive by Chennai Corporation's health department. Sanitary inspectors raided food stalls operating in unhygienic conditions and seized around 150 water cans, 12 water bottles and 7,000 sachets.

Food safety officials say the number of unlicensed units selling water is likely to grow this summer as many licensed manufacturers have cut production because of depleting groundwater sources.

K Rajaram, chairman of Greater Tamil Nadu Packaged Drinking Water Manufacturers Association, said the average treatment of packaged drinking water in most units had dipped by close to 15% in the last one month.

Of about 1,500 manufacturing units across the state, around 400 are concentrated in Chennai, Tiruvallur and Kancheepuram districts alone. Around 90 lakh litres of packaged drinking water is sold in Chennai every day .The demand, manufacturers say, is likely to touch at least 2 crore by this month-end. Packaged water units require a groundwater clearance certificate and approval from the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board. They also require a licence from the food safety department before operating.

Officials say while contamination of water sold by licensed manufacturers - who are required to undertake at least four types of filtration - happens at the filling and packaging level, other violations, including misbranding and repeatedly reusing containers, happen at the distribution point.

"Only 10% of the manufacturers directly market the water. Most of us engage middlemen," said N Murali, patron, Tamil Nadu Packaged Drinking Water Association. The stickers on the cans may be of one brand, but the water inside could be of another, or worse, it could be just tap water. The can may be refilled only 35 times, but sometimes they are overused, he acknowledged.

"It is a concern for us, but it is not happening at an alarming level," he said, adding that his association has also been tipping off officials.

Food safety officials check packaged drinking water

Health first: Nearly 1,920 cans were checked and 106 were seized as they did not have labels.

Department plans to continue surprise inspections

With the peak summer setting in over the city, the demand for packaged drinking water has increased. The Tamil Nadu Food Safety Department, Chennai, has started cracking down on packaged drinking water for the past few days following complaints on unauthorised manufacturing units.

On Monday, four teams checked vehicles laden with 20-litre bubble tops in various parts of the city, including Koyambedu, Vadapalani, Egmore and Korukkupet. Nearly 1,920 cans being transported for consumption were checked and teams seized 106 cans as they did not have labels or were packed in soiled containers.

At present, there are nearly 425 packaged drinking water manufacturing units in Chennai, Kancheepuram and Tiruvallur districts.

R.Kathiravan, designated officer, Tamil Nadu Food Safety Department, Chennai, said manufacturing units are required to get licence from Bureau of Indian Standards and also a mandatory food safety licence to operate the units.

“We checked the cans for licences, labels, batch number and also the condition of the containers. We received complaints about mushrooming of unauthorised units selling drinking water.”

He also pointed out that nearly 165 bubble tops were seized for similar reasons such as no proper label or licence number.

The department plans to continue checks until the weekend throughout the city.

May 8, 2017

DINAKARAN NEWS

Administration to keep tab on sweet shops

PATNA: The Patna districtadministration on Saturday decided to act tough against those selling poor quality sweetmeat, namkeens and other confectionary items in various shops across the city.

District magistrate Sanjay Kumar Agarwal said food safety, weight and measures and commercial taxes officials will keep a close eye on quality of sweets being sold in different shops besides taking action against those cheating customers while weighing the products. A magistrate will accompany these officials in course of raid.

The DM said the decision was taken following complaints that several sweetshops were weighing products along with the box. "Since one such box weighs 50gm, the shopkeepers are fooling the customers," Agarwal said.

He added in many high-end shops and malls, there was no option for the consumers to weigh the packaged product. "These shops have been asked to provide weighing machine to the consumers, failing which they will be punished," the DM said.

The team will also check the quality of materials being used in preparing sweets and milk products, such as paneer and khoya. "Use of poor quality oil and harmful colours can pose a threat to the health of people," the DM said.

The DM also urged the people to remain alert and inform the district administration if they come across any shop selling poor quality food products. "People can call on 2219810 or share the information on Facebook page of the district administration," said Agarwal.

The shopkeepers have also been advised to display the rate of various products, inclusive of all taxes, so that a consumer can know beforehand how much he has to pay. All the shops and hotels have been given a one-week time to comply with the order.

Mangoes, papayas turn toxic in Sec 26, shows raid

UT health department cracked down on the use of banned chemical calcium carbide for artifically ripening fruits at wholesale godowns in the Sector 26 grain market on Saturday, carrying out early-morning raids that started from 7am and continued for three hours. By the end of the raids, carried out with the help of the police force and under the supervision of sub-divisional magistrate (east) Tapsya Raghav , the department seized 2.5 tonnes of papaya that had been artifically rippened and found most of the 20 vendors who had been raided, using calcium carbide."We also found packets of ethylene which were used for ripening mangoes. We have sent the samples of it to the laboratory to check whether the chemical is being used in the permissible limits," said Raghav.

The department has since destroyed the papayas.

The SDM said most vendors were found using chemicals to ripen the fruits either in trucks standing behind their shops or in rented godowns. She also said use of calcium carbide for artificial ripening of fruits was not allowed under the Food and Safety Act, 2006, and Rules and Regulations, 2011. Thoughh laws on the use of calcium carbide are strict and even entail 10 years of imprison ment, the harmful chemical -otherwise used by welders -is applied on fruits by vendors without any fear.

When asked if there was a way to stop vendors from using calcium carbide on the fruits, the SDM said it was a grey-colored powder used by welders, so its supply could not be stopped in the market."But we will keep a check on its usage," she said.

The director of the Sector 26 market committee, Subhash Randhawa, said adulterated mangoes were coming from "Madras and China"."The chemical is being applied by suppliers their only.The practice of ripening papayas through carbide has stopped completely here," he added.

Unsafe drinking water cans seized

Cracking the whip on supply of unsafe drinking water, food safety officials have seized 165 unhygienic and unlabelled water cans in the city so far.

Food Safety and Standards Authority of India officials inspect bubble-top drinking water cans

Chennai:

According to officials, with summer hitting its peak and the city facing a water shortage, many unlicensed packaged water manufacturing companies have started exploiting the situation to make a fast buck.

To check this, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) had been inspecting trucks carrying bubble-top water cans.

Speaking to DTNext, R Kathiravan, Designated Officer, FSSAI, Chennai, said that his body had formed four teams to inspect canned water in various parts of the city. “Accordingly, a team of food safety officials near Koyambedu intercepted around 15 vehicles. Most of these cans were found unfit for consumption,” he said. In a particular case, the officials found no labels on 60 cans of water. They confiscated 31 such cans, which were unfit for consumption, Kathiravan said. Moreover, a total of 74 bubble-top water cans had labels, but there was no manufacturing date, he added.

When asked about the punishment, an official said, “As of now, we are creating awareness. Henceforth, we will file cases against the manufacturing companies and impose fines ranging from two to three lakh.”

It may be recalled that a few days ago, the Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) officials had seized a total of 149 cans and 7,181 sachets of drinking water which were unfit for consumption.

May 7, 2017

DECCAN CHRONICLE NEWS

DINAKARAN NEWS

No ban on chewing tobacco in Karnataka as Health Dept reverses order on AG’s advice

The Food Safety Commissionerate, the implementing authority of the ban on chewing tobacco, has issued a circular reversing the ban

BENGALURU: Five months after Karnataka banned all forms of chewing tobacco, the Health Department on Saturday reversed the order with clever wordplay. In November last year, it had submitted in the High Court about total compliance of the ban order.

The Food Safety Commissionerate, the implementing authority of the ban, issued a circular on Saturday stating that it is accepting the opinion of the Advocate General (AG). With this circular, the ban on chewing tobacco ban stands reversed.

Earlier, the commissionerate had sought the AG’s opinion on its circular dated November 24, 2016 that directed designated officers in all districts to submit daily reports on four aspects -- closure of number of chewing tobacco manufacturing units, quantity of chewing tobacco confiscated or seized, number of notices served and fines imposed, number of prosecutions initiated and to be initiated at additional deputy commissioner and magistrate courts.

The AG said that the department can neither shut manufacturing units nor confiscate chewing tobacco under the sections invoked in the circular. He suggested deleting clauses pertaining to these two aspects and replacing the words ‘chewing tobacco’ with ‘gutka’ and ‘pan masala’.

The AG had previously told Express that the department is well within its rights to shut manufacturing units or seize chewing tobacco under other sections of the law but not the sections of the Food Safety and Standards Act invoked in the circular — Section 59: Punishment for Unsafe Food and Section 66: Offences by Companies.

Asked how Saturday’s circular was in the health interest of the people, Principal Health Secretary Shalini Rajneesh said, “Chewing tobacco per se is not banned. The field officers shall seize tobacco and pan masala if they are sold conjointly.”

K V Dhananjay, advocate representing Cancer Patients Aid Association, said, “This modification shows that the state government has sold its conscience to the chewing tobacco lobby. We will approach the courts immediately and we are more than confident that public health will prevail in the courts and this modification will be quashed in no time.

State government reverses ban on ‘chewing tobacco’

In a U-turn, the Health Department on Saturday replaced the words “chewing tobacco” in its earlier tobacco ban order with “pan masala and gutka.”

Commissioner of Food Safety Subodh Yadav issued the new circular making the changes to the earlier one dated October 26, 2016. While the Commissioner argued that this was “in accordance with the Supreme Court directions”, anti-tobacco activists said it amounted to “contempt of court and yielding to the tobacco lobby”.

Mr. Yadav said the new circular was in keeping with a clarification issued by the Advocate-General. “Although the ban on pan masala and gutka had been announced earlier, there was no explicit order on that,” he explained. However, anti-tobacco activists alleged that the State was “deliberately undermining the fight against tobacco”.

Twin sachets

One of the activists, who did not wish to be named, said this would make way for sale of twin sachets — one sachet containing pan masala or gutka and the other chewing tobacco — by the same manufacturer.

Edible oil seized

Officials of Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) on Saturday seized 1,905 litres of edible oil with bogus labels. According to FSSAI officials, the seized oil - 127 cans of 15 litres.

Officials said that a close relative of the trader was arrested by Crime Branch (CCB) of City Police on Thursday for using a duplicate version of an oil company. Apart from seizing the huge volume of oil, FSSAI also lifted samples of the same for examination at a Government laboratory.

FSSAI officials were not available to give details on the location from which the oil cans were seized.

165 of 1,200 water cans checked unfit for drinking.

Chennai: Give it a second thought before you consume can water, as it could be full of diseases. In the raid conducted by Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) in Koyambedu on Saturday, a total of 165 cans out of 1,200 turned out to be contaminated and defective.

"A team of five checked around 15 vehicles from Kancheepuram and Tiruvallur districts and found out that the cans were unlabelled and soiled. We are frequenting the checks in commercial areas, as more than 60 percent of Chennaiites rely on can water " said Dr R. Kathiravan, designated officer, Tamil Nadu Food Safety and Drug told Deccan Chronicle.

While 60 cans had no proper labels, 31 cans were soiled and the rest were branded with names of unauthorised companies, added the official.

According to dietician, Dharini Krishnan, many health problems are associated with consuming the contaminated water.

"One might be affected with lung problems; nausea, vomiting and can also have fatal consequences. It is better to drink boiled water or store it in a copper vessel, as it removes all the bacteria within eight hours," said the dietician.

There is a total of four teams who would conduct the raids for two more weeks in all the arterial roads of Chennai.

In a similar raid conducted last week, the FSSAI team has found out the usage of an expired essence and excessive amount of synthetic colour in the mixed fruit juices in Aminjikarai.

Don't fall for polished fruits for they might be ladened with chemicals

Customers should be alert when they reach for ripe, juicy and glossy mango, papaya and other fruits as they could be ripened using chemicals. Doctors say such fruits are a health hazard.

Chennai:

With the demand for fruits and salad vegetables peaking in the scorching summer season, several traders and vendors are reportedly making a killing by ripening and sweetening fruits artificially.

Vendors in the city’s biggest wholesale fruit and vegetable market in Koyambedu, and a few other markets in the city, allegedly do not conform to the guidelines laid down by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI). Sources say that in order to make a quick buck, traders are using calcium carbides to ripen fruits such as mangoes, exposing customers to the risk of health hazards.

With the onset of kathiri veyyil a few days ago, the demand for fruits like mangoes, banana, papaya and watermelons has only gone up. However, some vendors using carbide stones and other chemical elements for artificial ripening, have turned out to be a bane. In doing so, such fruits would be ready for consumption practically overnight. Those claiming to know more allege that some traders also inject ‘erythrocyte’ in watermelons, to enhance the natural colour of the fruit.

Small- time fruit vendors also claim that when they go to Koyambedu market early in the morning, they notice traders spraying chemicals on the fruits. “On a few occasions, when I went to purchase mangoes and watermelons, I was shocked to see carbide stones poking out of the fruit pile. I have heard some customers complaining about the stones, when they came to buy fruits like mangos, chikku and watermelons,” said A Marimuthu, a fruit vendor in Aminjikarai. Some traders in Koyambedu market complex even keep the spray bottles inside their shops and since the officials have failed to conduct frequent raids and apprehend violators, most of them get away scot- free.

However, members of Koyambedu Market Licensed Merchants Associations say that they advise the traders not to indulge in such practices. Thyagarajan, president, Koyambedu Market Vegetable and Fruit Vendors Association, said, “FSSAI and Greater Chennai Corporation officials are conducting raids on a continuous basis and we are also advising the traders in the market not to use any chemical spray and carbide stones for artificial ripening.”

However, a vendor from the Koyambedu fruit market, speaking on condition of anonymity said that although they use chemicals, they ensure that this does not cause health hazards to the consumers. “I have been selling fruits like mangoes and chikku for over a decade here, and no customer has complained about fruits,” he said.

Exercise caution: When contacted, Food Safety Wing Designated Officer, R Kathiravan, Chennai, told DTNext that they are constantly inspecting all the markets across the city and appealing to the consumers to purchase only those mangos that ripen naturally. People should be careful while purchasing fruits like mangoes, chikku, banana and papaya, as there is a possibility that they have been artificially ripened,” he said. When asked about colouring agents in fruit juices, the officer said that they target such vendors. “We will conduct raids soon.”

Risk of allergies: Doctors say artificially ripened fruits contain lesser nutritional value and can cause allergies. Dr M A Aleem, former Vice-Principal and a medical expert of KAPV Government Medical College, Tiruchy, said, “Eating fruits ripened with carbide and ethylene would pave the way for causing diarrhoea, peptic ulcer, indigestion and irritation in the mouth. Consumers should buy fruits with utmost care. Worse still, it could cause cancer of the bladder.”

Touch of stone: The carbide stone has chemicals which are detrimental to health. Due to these chemicals, fruits are being ripened within 12 hours. However, ethylene gas is permitted to be used by FSSAI for ripening by dipping the mangos in the liquid.

What norms say: No person shall sell or offer or expose for sale or have in his premises for the purpose of sale under any description, fruits which have been artificially ripened by use of acetylene gas, commonly known as carbide gas. The fresh fruits and vegetables shall be free from rotting and free from coating of waxes, mineral oil and colours.

Violations

Carbide stone is banned

The chemical is banned under the Food Safety and Standards Regulations, 2011

Violators could be penalised with a 7-year imprisonment or a hefty fine

Around five tonnes of artificial fruits, including mangoes, were seized in 2016

8.5 tonnes of fruits have been seized till date this year

Ethylene gas is the permitted and most commonly used ripening agent

Unit making ice-candies with Saccharin unearthed

The ice-candies which were destroyed by health officials on Saturday

JAIPUR: Food safety officers unearthed a manufacturing unit of ice-candies for allegedly using saccharin as a sweetener on Saturday. Saccharin is an artificial sweeter which is not permitted to be used as an ingredient for producing ice-candies.

The manufacturing unit — Jai Shree Ambey, is situated in Jaipuriyon Ka Bad at Sirsi Road. "The food safety officers collected two samples of ice candy and milk candy. We have also destroyed 1,000 ice-candies which were prepared with saccharin," chief medical health officer (CMHO) Jaipur-I, Dr Narottam Sharma said.

At the time, when a team of CMHO raided the manufacturing unit, they found that there were workers in the unit manufacturing ice-candies. "We asked them if they have used saccharin in preparing the ice candies. They accepted that they have used the artificial sweeteners. They have also given it in written," Verendra Singh, food safety officer said.

"Saccharin is harmful to children especially those who are under-14 years. It affects bones badly. In rural areas, these ice-candies are sold and its sale picks up during summer," Singh said.

In comparison to Saccharin, sugar is quite expensive. To earn heavy profits during summer when the demand for ice-candies goes up significantly, they use of saccharin. The granulated sugar most customarily used as food is sucrose. Saccharin is more than 300 times sweeter than sucrose, the officials said.

Officials said that if lab reports show that the ice candies contain saccharin, they will present the case before the court.

The firm caught preparing ice candies using saccharin, sale it in the rural areas. If children consume it regularly, they become vulnerable to different kinds of health related problem. Food safety officers also claimed that it may have a carcinogen effect on children. Officials said that whenever they have found saccharin in ice-candies, the testing report shows that it is unsafe for consumption.

May 6, 2017

DINAKARAN NEWS

Not just Maggi: Here's the shameful truth about food safety inspection in India

New Delhi: Even as Nestlé India continues to firefight its gravest crisis ever in its nearly three-decade old history of selling Maggi noodles in the country, the most vital question now doing the rounds, including the social media, is how could a multinational company (MNC) carry out business for so long... selling a product with potential health hazards to millions of consumers?

The presence of Monosodium Glutamate (MSG) and lead above permissible limits in Maggi samples cannot be an overnight phenomenon. Besides, there could be many more products by other MNCs as well that could potentially harm the health of Indians.

Who has allowed these MNCs to sell “sub-standard” product all these years? Can the government be absolved of its responsibility and accountability for allowing domestic and foreign food manufacturing companies to have a free run?

“Both, the Centre and state governments usually avoid taking stringent action against MNCs or big Indian manufacturers, despite being aware of violations. However, this time Delhi government has been prompt in taking action on Maggi issue,” a retired senior official from Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food & Civil Supplies told Firstpost on condition of anonymity.

Ashim Sanyal, COO of the voluntary action group Consumer Voice said, “Who knows what people have been consuming for the last 20 years? There’s laxity on part of both the state governments and the central regulatory body FSSAI. Both never bothered to exercise their powers to have a regular check on food products, whether Maggi or any other ready-to-eat items all these years.”

The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) was established as an independent statutory authority under Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, which consolidates various acts & orders that have hitherto handled food related issues in various ministries and government departments. The agency has been created for laying down standards for food articles and to regulate their manufacture, storage, distribution, sale and import to ensure availability of safe and wholesome food for human consumption.

The 2006 Act aims to establish a single reference point for all matters relating to food safety and standards.

“If it’s so, why did FSSAI take so much time to act despite the fact that Maggi controversy broke some time back?” questioned Sanyal.

Grey areas

Consumer policy experts and activists have identified several grey areas that help food operators to supply sub-standard products to consumers and yet remain ‘untouched’. It’s ultimately the consumer, who gets the wrong end of the stick.

- Central regulator doesn’t conduct regular inspections and testing of products, to ensure that only the right quality product is sold in the market.

- There is laxity on part of state governments’ food safety departments as well.

- There is lack of proper coordination between the Centre and states, as the latter don’t report to the Centre in this regard.

- Barring a few laboratories accredited by the National Accreditation Board for Testing & Calibration Laboratories (NABL), several testing laboratories in states fail to conform to standards. The equipment used by these labs is often not upgraded and not properly calibrated. It leads to variation in results.

- Despite having immense power, the food safety commissioners and officers in states don’t exercise it on a regular basis to keep a check on all ready-to-eat products on shelves.

- Often the field inspectors fail to get permission from higher authorities to conduct a raid and check products.

- Lack of proper training facilities of inspection staff, and modernization.

- Unlike abroad, the implementation of law and regulations is weak in India. So, is the penalty.

- Both the regulator at the Centre and food safety departments in the states suffer from staff crunch. The state units lack funds.

- Corruption is another area of concern.

- A Five-year action plan chalked out jointly by the Centre and states in 2009-10 is yet to be implemented.

Bejon Kumar Misra, an international consumer policy expert, said, “First, the industries exercise a strong influence on policy makers and it’s easy for them to get through. Second, instead of sitting jointly and finding a solution, there’s a blame-game between the Centre and states. Even when any plan has been made, it finally fails to get implemented on ground. Nobody wants to bell the cat.”

Unlike India, legal procedures and penalty system are so stringent abroad that no one dares to violate them. The system of recalling sub-standard products in India is voluntary and not mandatory like in other countries.

Sanyal added, “The Supreme Court had pointed out the issue of penalty in the case of contaminated milk. No legal action is taken and one gets away by paying a small penalty. There’s a need to evolve laws according to changing times. We hardly get to hear sub-standard products being recalled by a company.”

“Some years back, a Jamshedpur court had prosecuted Nestlé, after MSG was found in Maggi noodles. But, what happened after that nobody knows. This is the sorry state-of-affairs of our system and no one is afraid of law. But, it’s for the first time since the Consumer Protection Act, 1986 came into existence, the government has registered a case against Maggi noodles with the National Consumer Grievance Redressal Commission, claiming compensation for the consumers,” Misra pointed out.

Food safety officers seek clarifications on ITC's Yippee noodles

After Nestle's Maggi, there seem to be question in store for ITC's Yippee noodles.

According to a report in The Times of India, the Uttarakhand food safety office has sought clarifications from the company about the claims it has made on the label of this popular brand. The company has been asked to respond in 15 days about the nutritional claims it makes on the packet. The notice was issued on Friday, according to the report.

The food safety officials had tested samples of Yippee Magic Masala and Classic Masala from a store in Kaliyar in Haridwar, the report says.

The food safety office has asked the company to provide the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India-approved lab reports about the shelf-life of the both the versions. The aim is to check whether the claim that it is best before nine months from the date of manufacture is correct or not.

ITC, in a clarification sent to Firstpost, had this to say: "The picking up of food samples and seeking of information by Food Safety Officers is a routine occurrence and part of the duties of the Food Safety Officer under the Food Safety and Standards Act 2006 and is not an out of ordinary event requiring any cause for concern to the public. ITC’s Yippee! Noodles are in full compliance with food safety laws, and are backed with ITC’s world-class internal laboratories as well as at FSSAI-approved, NABL-accredited external laboratories confirmation.

"The information sought by the Food Safety Officer pertains to statutory declarations required by the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, that appear on the label, and ITC is fully cooperating with the Food Safety Officer in providing the information required by him. It is pertinent to mention that ITC has obtained adequate scientific analysis substantiating all information before making such declarations on the pack."

Interestingly, the move by the food safety officers comes days after the company removed the 'no added MSG' disclaimer from the packs. The move followed recent directions by the FSSAI, said a PTI report.

Announcing its decision, the company had said earlier in a statement that under the Food Safety Standards Act, if a manufacturer adds MSG (monosodium glutamate) in its product, then only the quantum of MSG has to be declared.

Moreover, the FSSAI, in connection with noodles of "another brand" (read Nestle's Maggi), had held that such statement of having no MSG was "inappropriate", ITC said.

"Therefore, ITC is voluntarily taking steps to remove the phrase 'no added MSG' from its labels in its new batches of packaging and consumers should ignore this on the current packaging. ITC would like to once again assure consumers that MSG is not added to Sunfeast YiPPee! Noodles," ITC said.

Unfortunately for ITC, the food safety authorities' action comes at a time when the company is pushing the Yippee brand to make the most of the Maggi debacle.

According to a report in the Business Standard on on 13 June, the company is distributing leaflets among retailers, explaining how it has conducted stringent tests on its products.

"In all these tests, our food products have consistently been found to comply with all regulatory standards," the report cited the leaflet as saying. The retailers are being told to show it to Maggi's loyal customers in a bid to woo them to Yippee.

However, the FSSAI move is in line with the expectations of many an analyst who had predicted the Maggi incident to have a cascading impact on other brands too.

Reliance Securities, for one, had said in a report on Nestle it sees the ignominy extending to all brands in the category in general and not just dent one particular brand as FSSAI pushes to strictly implement the new norms on food safety across all packaged food products.

"This would force all the companies in the segment, like Dabur (in Honey), ITC (Sunfeast, Yipee, Kitchens of India), Britannia, Parle, Pepsico and HUL (Knorr, Kissan, Magnum), to declare in detail the ingredients used in their packaged products," the brokerage had said.

Interestingly, much before the FSSAI crackdown on Nestle began and gave rise to a debate on food safety issues in India, Consumer Education & Research Society (CERS) had found that many popular instant noodles brands are deceiving consumers on nutrition claims they make on the labels.

According to a report in Moneylife published in 2012, in-house laboratory tests conducted by CERS found that 15 brands made fake health claims and have nutritional levels way below their claims.

The brands included Maggi, Top Ramen, Knorr, Ching’s Secret, Sunfeast Yippee!, Foodles, Tasty Treat and Wai Wai X-press.

“Some of the common findings for most of the samples tested included high level of sodium salts, significantly low fibre content, high amount of fats and several other shocking factors. The brands that claimed ‘Healthy’, ‘wholesome’, ‘enriched with proteins and iron’ and ‘full of fibre’, were refuted by the test findings as going way above the safe limit of several harmful elements,” the report quoted CERS as saying in a release.

Clearly, it is high time the FSSAI started testing all the brands in this category.

FSSAI proposes blueprint for 'food smart cities'

Regulator FSSAI has proposed widening the ambit of smart cities by incorporating food management system into it to ensure safe and nutritious food consumed by citizens.

The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) and Urban Development Ministry on May 2 organised a workshop on 'Food Smart Cities' to discuss its framework and methodology for rollout.

Senior representatives from Smart Cities including Ludhiana, Ajmer, Jaipur, Gurgaon and Bhubaneswar participated in the meeting.

FSSAI CEO Pawan Agarwal said that food has been largely ignored in city planning, despite it being the central piece around which life revolves.

"There is now a golden opportunity to integrate food systems management into the smart city guidelines," he said in a statement.

The Food Smart Cities would have end-to-end solutions for food systems in urban areas.

Stating that rapid urbanisation has raised concerns about food quality, FSSAI said: "One of the ways to address this is to integrate sustainable food safety and nutrition systems within the smart city design and create Food Smart Cities".

FSSAI has proposed a four-pillar approach that cities could undertake at the local level to ensure safety and hygiene across the supply chain.

"The workshop concluded with a decision that a framework for food smart cities would be further refined and circulated to cities around the country, aspiring to be Food Smart Cities," FSSAI said.

HC issues notice to FSSAI, govt over lack of food testing labs

INDORE: Indore bench of Madhya Pradesh high court on Friday issued notices to the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), the state government and others on a petition seeking more number of laboratories to test food samples in the state.

The petition states that there is only one functional food testing laboratory in Madhya Pradesh at Bhopal and the rest two at Indore and Ujjain are non-functional. It was also highlighted in a newspaper report published in the past days, which was annexed with the petition.

The matter was heard by the division bench of Justice PK Jaiswal and Justice Virendra Singh, who directed the respondents to file their replies within six weeks. The petition has been filed by former corporator Mahesh Garg through advocate Vinay Zelawat.

The respondents to the petition are FSSAI, principal secretary of public health and family welfare department, commissioner of food safety and control, district collector and deputy director of food and drug administration department.

The petition said that as per the current system, all the food samples collected in the state are sent to the state capital for testing. The entire process takes around 15 to 20 days. Since all food items whose samples are collected cannot be seized completely, the contaminated batch might get circulated in the market by the time the reports arrive, the petition has alleged.

Food Safety Officials Seize Tobacco And Expired Products

The Imphal West District Police under the supervision of the Imphal West superintendent of police N Herojit along with the Food Safety & Standards Enforcement Wing, Manipur today seized tobacco products worth around Rs 10 lakhs and expired eatable items.

The tobacco product were seized from three different shops located at Prajatantra Gali, Thangal Bazar, Imphal and the three shops were owned by Ganesh Kumar(25) s/o Hiralal Shah of Bihar presently staying at Tillipati, Anil Kumar Gupta (25) s/o Kapil Manishah of Bihar presently staying at RIMS Road and Guddy Shah (22) s/o Kedar Shah of Bihar presently staying at Tillipati.

The expired eatable items (mostly consumed by kids) were seized from a godown located at Kakhulong Khul, Paona Bazar, Imphal owned by Mukesh Kumar Sah (47) s/o Jokhi Lal Sah of Bihar presently staying at Masjid Road, Paona Bazar.

Speaking to media persons, Imphal West additional SP (law and order) Priyadarshini Laishram said that the state government has already banned selling of tobacco products from the year 2013.

So the team has conducted the raid and was able to seized a huge amount of tobacco items from three different shops, he added.

They has been intensifying such drive mostly tobacco products in view of high prevalence of cancer in the state as uses of tobacco products leads to cancer, said Priyadarshini.

She said that necessary action and case will be taken up against the three shop owners after obtaining the sampling nicotine report of the seized product from the laboratory by the Food Safety department.

She added that keeping of expired product is also an illegal action so they have seized the eatable items from godown and found that most of the seized items are items mostly consumed by the kids.

Priyadarshini said, “It is most likely that the owner kept the items with an ulterior motive such as to convert into a brand new by changing covers or tag.”

So proper action will be taken up against the owner of the godown after finishing the procedure of testing the items by the Food Safety department, she continued.

Hyderabad High Court shoots down TSRTC move to promote Bisleri

HYDERABAD: Suspending for now the decision of the TSRTC officials to allow only Bisleri water bottles at all its bus stations in Telangana, the Hyderabad High Court on Thursday allowed all the stall owners in the bus stations to sell all branded water bottles that are approved by the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) and Food Safety Standards Authority of India (FSSAI).

The bench of acting Chief Justice Ramesh Ranganathan and Justice Shameem Akther pronounced this interim order in an appeal filed by Jahed Bhasha of Hyderabad and scores of licensed shop owners who were aggrieved with the diktat of the authorities who are coercing them to sell only Bisleri brand water. RTC has been maintaining that it brought in the new method to reach out to the public who have been raising several complaints about the stall owners regarding the quality and price of the water. A single judge earlier found nothing wrong in this and allowed the RTC management to go ahead with its tie-up with Bisleri. Aggrieved by this, the shop keepers preferred an appeal over the single judge order.

C Ramachandra Raju, counsel for the licensed shop owners, during his arguments charged the higher authorities of TSRTC with entering into a nexus with Bisleri for enriching themselves through discreet methods. It will be a discriminatory approach if only a particular brand is allowed and other brands are denied entry, he said and added that this will deprive the passengers too to pick up their choice of water bottles. Moreover, this will allow the officials to increase the price of the water bottles and will eventually lead to a monopoly which should never be permitted, he said.

The bench found prima facie force in the argument of the licensees. The restraint order will be in force till a final judgment is pronounced in the case or till the life of the current licence period, the bench said.

New method to detect artificial ripening of fruits

Puducherry: A team of researchers led by the head of the food science and technology department of Pondicherry University said they have developed a simple, rapid and cost-effective method to detect artificial ripening of fruits.

Artificial ripening of fruits using calcium carbide commonly called as 'powder' or 'masala' has been banned under Prevention of Food Adulteration Act and Food Safety and Standards Act. Consumption of fruits ripened artificially using calcium carbide may cause serious health hazards.

The team, led by Prathap Kumar Shetty, developed a sensor solution (bio-functionalized gold nanoparticle). When the solution is mixed with water with which the fruits have been washed, the solution changes colour, if the fruits had been ripened using calcuim carbide. This can be used to prove whether the fruits were ripened using calcium carbide. The team has filed a patent for their invention at regional patent office, Chennai. The other members of the team were PhD student Ankita J Lakade and postdoctoral scientist K Sundar.

"The sensor solution can be used by anyone without any technical expertise. The procedure is very simple and cost effective. Wash the test fruit with 10ml of water and take 1ml of the wash and mix with equal volume of sensor solution in a glass test tube and mix. The change in colour of solution from red to purple indicates that calcium carbide is used for ripening the fruit. No change in colour of the solution indicates that calcium carbide was not used for ripening the fruit," said Shetty.

He said reputed laboratories have begun validating the sensor solution. "The sensor solution will be released soon after validation. It is a timely invention as there have been a lot of concerns among the consumers on the artificial ripening of fruits such as mangoes. The authorities could not enforce the regulation due to lack of simple analytical methods to ascertain artificial ripening of fruits," said Shetty. He added that he was motivated to evolve a simple technique to detect artificial ripening of fruits when he served as member of a scientific panel on analysis at Food safety and standards authority of India (FSSAI). He is currently a member of a panel on contaminants in food chain at FSSAI.

The cost of an analysis is less than 20 paise, Shetty said. "The cost will be much lower if the sensor solution is synthesized in commercial scale," he added.

Explaining the concept of the sensor solution, Shetty said calcium carbide contains high levels of arsenic. "Fruits ripened using calcium carbide always have higher amounts of arsenic than the naturally-ripened fruits. We developed a cheap sensor solution, which exhibits visible changes in colour when it comes in contact with arsenic hydride. The solution is red in colour and it charges to purple when arsenic hydride comes in contact with it," he said.

The same team had earlier developed a new technique to detect early stages of spoilage of milk under practical condition so that milk can be used before it is spoiled completely.

SAI to set up Mobile Food Testing Laboratory units across country

FSSAI to set up Mobile Food Testing Laboratory units across country

New Delhi, May 5 (KNN) The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India wants to set up Mobile Food Testing Laboratory (MFTL) units throughout the country.

These MFTLs will be fully functional, equipped with all basic facilities and the required quick testing instruments and rapid diagnostic kits for detection of adulteration in various food samples particularly, Milk and Milk products, Edible Fats and oils, Water, Spices etc.

At least one Laboratory will be set up in each State/UT on turnkey basis.

The Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 was enacted in 2006 in order to consolidate all the laws relating to food and to establish the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) for laying down science-based standards for articles of food and for regulating their manufacture, storage, distribution, sale and import, for ensuring availability of safe and wholesome food for human consumption in the Country.

The Authority has rolled out a Central Sector Scheme for “Strengthening of the Food Testing System in the country including provision for Mobile Food Testing Labs” with the approval of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India.

The scheme envisages establishment of Mobile Food Testing Laboratory (MFTL) units throughout the country, at least one in each State/UT.

In this context, FSSAI has invited bids for “Setting up of Mobile Food Testing Laboratory by the FSSAI”.

The main aim of launching the mobile food testing lab is to check adulteration in milk and related products, ghee, spices, etc. Besides, experts will also make people aware about how to differentiate original food items from adulterants.

Raid Conducted in Grain Market by Department of Food Safety

Chandigarh, May 5, 2017: Artificial ripening of fruits like mango, papaya with calcium carbide is common practice adopted by various Food Business Operators during summer season. The use of Calcium Carbide is prohibited for ripening of fruits under the Food Safety and Standards (Prohibition and Restrictions on Sales) Regulations, 2011. The ripened fruits with the above said chemical cause serious health problems.

Looking into the seriousness of the matter the officials of Department of Food Safety, U.T.of Chandigarh under the supervision of Dr. Tapasya Raghav, IAS, SDM, Chandigarh Administration conducted a massive raid in the area of Grain Market, Sector 26, Chandigarh today. Many warehouses and shops where the fruits like mango and papaya were stored were inspected and it was found that the Food Business Operators were using Calcium Carbide for its ripening. Approx. 2.5 tons of papaya was seized and

destroyed in the dumping ground of Chandigarh through the vehicles of Municipal Corporation, Chandigarh.

The traders dealing in sale, storage and distribution of fruits are advised not to use any type of hazardous chemical for the ripening of fruits. If anybody is found violating the provisions of Food Safety and Standard Act, 2006 and the Rules & Regulations, 2011 framed there under, action will be initiated against such violators.

Govt bans gutka, pan masala in State

PANJIM: The State Government on Thursday issued an order prohibiting manufacture, storage, sale or distribution of food products containing tobacco or nicotine like gutkha and pan masala in the State for one year.

The ban also applies to processed, flavoured, scented, chewing tobacco, whether packaged or unpackaged or sold as one or separate products.

Commissioner of Food Safety, B R Singh, said that in the interest of public health, the government prohibits manufacture, storage, sale or distribution of gutkha and pan masala, by whatever name it is called, which contains tobacco or nicotine as an ingredient. “The ban has been imposed for a period of one year,” he said.

The decision appears to have been taken in view of the Supreme Court order wherein it observed that to circumvent the ban of sale of gutkha, manufacturers were selling pan masala (without tobacco) with flavoured chewing tobacco in separate sachets.

The notification has been issued under Food Safety and Standards Act (Prohibition and Restrictions on Sales) Regulations 2011 and Act 2006.