Festive Season’s Bitter ‘Sweet’ Truth

CHANDIGARH: By the time you get to know if the sweets you savoured were adulterated, the festive season might be over. Instead of confiscating stocks that appear to be stale, the UT administration is treading with caution this time -- limiting its surprise raids on sweet shops to taking samples alone, reports of which are out after seven to 10 days.

This is in sharp contrast to the drive in 2010 when the administration had played to the gallery by confiscating and destroying tonnes of raw material and ready-to-serve sweets in an extended drive.

Justifying the move, ADC Mahavir Kaushik said samples were being taken from different areas of the city, but destroying the sweets on the spot would be considered only if a manufacturing unit did not conform to the hygiene standards.

Welcoming it, N K Singhania, general secretary of Chandigarh Sweet Shop Owners' Association, said most of the sweet manufacturing units in the city have drastically improved their hygiene standards over the past two years and there was no question of contamination. "Checking adulteration levels by taking samples is the process as per the book. The sweet shop owners were against the practice of largescale destruction of sweets without even waiting for the lab reports," he added.

Though the administration had come up with a set of new guidelines for sweet manufacturing units like installation of six feet high tiles and proper ventilation in the kitchen, no drive was conducted to check compliance last year.

Most of the old sweet factories located in periphery have kucha floors, with poor drainage and no tiles in cooking areas. The administration has got more teeth with the recently-notified Food Safety and Standard Act that authorizes it to take strict action against sweet shop and restaurant owners.

FDA raids shops, collects khoya samples in Katra

ALLAHABAD: As part of the ongoing drive against adulteration in food products during the festive period, officials of Food and Drug Authority (FDA) led by additional city magistrate (ACM) I and chief food inspector (CFI) conducted raids in Katra locality on Wednesday and took khoya samples from two reputed sweet shops and chhena (cottage cheese) sample from another shop on Kutchery Road. The samples would be sent to the state laboratory for examination after which necessary action would be taken.

CFI, Harimohan Srivastava said the team also raided shops in Phaphamau area and inspected khoya mandi where several dealers fled from the spot leaving behind their stock. The team seized around 1.5 quintal of khoya from the spot which would be sent for examination.

At a shop in Phaphamau area the team took samples of curd and gazak while a dairy operating without a license was challaned. In Soraon area the team served notice to a cold storage functioning without license.

At Karchana in trans-Yamuna area, the team was led by SDM, Karchana and 50 kg besan (gram flour) was seized from a shop and sample sent for examination.

Srivastava said the drive would continue till Deepawali and warned shopkeepers to refrain from selling adulterated food items or else face the music.

Beware of spiked edibles this Diwali: FDA

ALLAHABAD: Diwali is just a fortnight away. It is the festival of lights and sweets. So, being an active an aware citizen, people of Sangam city are approaching officials of the FDA (Food & Drug Administration) in a large number to learn simple methods useful in detecting adulteration. Most of the inquires pouring in are to ascertain purity of food and milk products as also asking about availability of instant kits that have already gained popularity in metropolitan cities.
FDA officials feel it's a good beginning and citizens are taking initiative to acquaint themselves with simple methods. Dr Sarita Pandey says "If we know simple methods to detect adulteration, we can save our family from impure and stale products". She added "Awareness must be spread among consumers". If you want to check if the khoya you are buying or have bought is adulterated, a few drops of tincture of iodine will make it turn bluish if adulterated. Another method is using sulphuric acid.
Adulteration is an unethical practice, as it poses serious risk to human health. Presence of harmful starch, urea-mixed milk, caustic soda, ararot, artificial sweetening chemicals, non-approved colored sweets (like heavy metals incorporated malachite green, etc) and unhygienic conditions may lead to acute gastritis, diarrhoea, dysentery, dehydration, kidney inflammation, etc.
Housewife Aditi says "Keeping an eye on the forthcoming festival, consumers must be aware of simple methods to detect adulteration".
Chief food safety officer H K Srivastava told TOI "We are promoting awareness about easy methods to detect adulteration in food products, without the need to send them to a laboratory.

Ahead of Diwali, adulteration fears keep FDA on toes

MUMBAI: The state government has instructed the food and drug administration (FDA) to collect random samples from sweet manufacturing units and shops to check adulteration and use of banned substances. The department has also warned of initiating action against those officials who fail to implement the food safety act effectively in the state.
With less then 15 days left for Diwali festive season, minister of state for FDA Satej Patil held a meeting with officials at his Vidhan Bhavan office on Thursday to review measures taken by the department to clamp down on supply of adulterated sweets and food items in the market, especially during the festive season.
"Instead of waiting for complaints from citizens and then initiating actions, I have asked officials to collect random samples of sweets and other eatables from manufacturing units and retails shops. These samples will be sent to the laboratory for testing. If any kind of adulteration is found or the sample is found to be of substandard quality, then action will be initiated against the erring person," Patil said.
FDA commissioner Mahesh Zagade said that besides initiating action against erring manufacturers, the responsibility of implementing rules and regulation will be fixed on department officials. "It is the duty of the officials to find out whether food manufacturers are complying with the norms laid down in the food safety act. Punitive action will be initiated against the officials who fail to perform their duty," Zagade said, adding, "Action against manufacturers indulging in malpractices and errant officials will help in effective implementation of rules."
Patil urged citizens to buy sweets and other food products from shops that have proper registration and necessary licences. Cautioning people against purchasing uncovered sweets, the minister said, "FDA's action along with public awareness will help in curbing malpractices in the sector."

Drive fails to yield results

JAIPUR: It seems that the much-hyped campaign of 'Shudh Ke Liye Yudh' by the medical and health department is not giving the desired results. Though the officials of the medical and health department have begun collecting samples from various sweet shops, ration shops and ghee manufacturing units, the problem with the campaign is that it will take a fortnight to get the sample results and the festival of Diwali will be over by then.

On Monday the team found adulterated mawa and later destroyed it, but the campaign so far has proved to be a futile exercise.

"We cannot do much about it before the reports come. Only the reports will confirm if there is an adulteration and if so then up to what extent. We can only take necessary action till then. But the good news is that we have been able to expose several factories involved in making adulterated ghee," said a senior officer of the medical and health department.

O P Thankan, chief medical and health officer Jaipur 1 said, "In this procedure our job is to collect samples and send them to the lab. Since January 2012 we have sent at least 400 samples to the lab out of which in many cases we received negative reports while many reports are still awaited."

Officials added that they will present challans against the defaulters in court even after Diwali once they get the reports confirming adulteration in the products.

Saras mawa out in the market now

Rajasthan Cooperative Dairy Federation (RCDF) on Monday added mawa to its bouquet of products under the brand name of Saras. RCDF had to enter the mawa market after adulterated mawa was found in the market.

The products will be available in 500 gram, 1 kg and 5 kg. The price has been fixed at Rs. 200 per kg. Apart from main Saras parlour at JLN Marg, 50 other outlets have been selected where mawa will be available. Along with the launch of Saras mawa, RCDF has also removed the cap of 5 kg limit for free home delivery.

Now the facility will be available on placing an order of even 1 kg.

It’s ‘sweet’ switchover this Diwali

ALLAHABAD: This Diwali the city is switching over to dry fruits and chocolates instead of sweets. In a drift from the tradition of offering and exchanging sweets to friends and guests, people are showing preference for dry fruits and chocolates despite the soaring prices of dry fruits. The sale of dry-fruits has, in fact, gone up by 30% compared to previous years.

The companies too are making most the changing trend and have come up with attractive gift hampers of chocolates and dry fruits. One of the reasons behind this new trend is growing cases of adulteration in sweets and milk, especially during festivals.

Traders, however, claim that some customers are opting for packed sweets like 'kaju katri' and 'rasgulla' from branded companies.

Nitin Mehrotra, a shopkeeper, said: "Youngsters are preferring dry fruits and chocolates over sweet boxes". "I used to distribute sweets made out of maawa among families and friends till two years back. But after growing incidents of adulterated sweets, I have started giving dry fruits and chocolates" said Rohit Shukla, an entrepreneur.

Dhananjay Singh, an entrepreneur, said, "Dry fruits and chocolates are best options available in markets. We cannot risk anyone's health on such a happy occasion." He added that the trend is now shifting from sweets to dry fruits as it is more convenient and also good for health. Even cooperates and businessmen too gift their employees dry fruits and cookies. On other hand, there is a section of people which believes in sticking to the tradition of distributing sweets. Many sweet-meat shops in the city are also offering homemade sweets.

A trader in Civil Lines said, "Undoubtedly, people have started gifting dry fruits more but the famous sweets shops too are doing brisk business. Scared of adulteration people now buy sweets from only famous and trusted shops."

Ahmedabad civic body cracks the whip on adulterators, 2 get jail term

With Diwali approaching, purchase of milk products and masalas has risen. So has adulteration of these items creating a health hazard for consumers.
To deter vendors from adulterating products, the health department of Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) began a strict check on Thursday across the city. The civic body found three units selling adulterated products.
Grocery and sweet shops were checked by a squad of food inspectors. During the check in Navrangpura, food inspector SS Makwan found one shop where the vendor was selling sealed packets of fennel seeds without brand name or label. “It is mandatory for the manufacturer or vendor to sell edible products with proper label having brand name, batch number, manufacturing date, expiry date and other details,” said a health official.The vendor was penalised with three months of imprisonment.
Similarly, during the check in Sardarnagar, food inspector MR Mahajan found that one vendor was selling packaged drinking water bottles with particles inside. Since the water was contaminated, the vendor was punished with imprisonment of six months and Rs1, 000 as fine.
While checking in Isanpur, food inspector AR Patel and his team came upon a shop which was selling 500 gm red chilli powder packet withoutAgmark logo (the symbol of purity). For this, the vendor, Ramesh Talati, was fined Rs500.

Food department collects samples, destroys spurious edibles

ALLAHABAD: Samples were collected and stocks of spurious edibles destroyed during raids carried out at various locations in the city by three separate teams of the department of food safety and drug administration and some rural segments of the districts, on Thursday. While two teams raided markets of Koran and Phulpur areas, the main team raided different shops and malls in the city.
The team led by ACM-II Nagendra Singh and chief food safety officer Hari Mohan Srivastava raided a restaurant in a mall in Civil Lines and collected samples of food items like samosa, namkeen and sandwich.
"We have collected a sample of sandwich from one of the cinema halls in the mall wherein the date of packaging was written by pen and not printed", said Srivastava. The team also raided Guru Nanak Cold storage of Civil Lines and found about 50 kilogram pomegranates not fit for consumption and the team destroyed the entire lot. Apart from these locations, the team also inspected items at two eminent sweet shops of the Civil Lines market.
Srivastava said the team sent to Phulpur destroyed about 50 kg of khoya at Babuganj market. Likewise, sample of kalakand (a sweet prepared with khoya) was collected from a shop in Sahason, informed the officer. Besides, 5 kg of spices were destroyed in the same market, he added. But the team found markets of Koroan and Phulpur (main) closed and hence no raided could be conducted.

Shop owners without licence to be nailed

Imphal, November 08 2012: Come January next year, owners of shops and other business establishment selling eatable items and those companies manufacturing food items without registration card or license issued by the Food Safety and Authority of India would have to face the music.

In accordance to the Food Safety and Standard Act, 2006, which is implemented in the State since 2011, owners of shops and other business establishments selling eatable items as well as companies manufacturing food items should posses the required registration card or license given by the Food and Safety Authority of India by August 2011.However, as the owners of most shops/business establishments and companies are unaware of the provisions of the Act, the Govt of Manipur has extended the deadline for acquiring the registration card and license till January 2013 .

business establishment selling eatable items

According to the guidelines of the Act, if an individual is running a shop selling eatables with a business turnover of Rs 10 lakh, he or she should get registered with the Food Safety and Authority of India and all those shops/ establishments and companies selling and producing food items with a business turnover of above Rs 12 lakhs should posses license from the Food Safety and Authority of India.

Though the steps taken up by the Food Safety and Authority of India to provide safe food stuffs to the general public is praiseworthy, yet the people of the state in general and the owners of shops and establishments and companies selling and producing food items in particular do not understand the Act entirety.

Over and above, all the individuals who have registered and possessed license do not seem to bother about the Act.

In this regard, Hueiyen Lanpao interacted with some Food Safety Officers of certain districts of the State, who maintained that there have been publicity campaigns carried out by the Health department telling the owners of all shops and establishments selling eatable items and those companies producing food items to get the required registration card or license.

However, lack of awareness regarding the Act has led to the total neglect of the importance of possessing the registration card and the license.

Nonetheless, the Health department has made a final appeal to all owners of all shops and establishments selling eatable items and those companies manufacturing food items to get themselves registered and possess the required license from the Food Safety and Authority of India by January next year, failing which legal actions will be taken up and get them arrested.

In addition to this, they would be banned from continuing their business.

The Food Safety Officer informed that shop owners and proprietors of industries not following the guidelines of the Food Safety and Standard Act could be fined Rs 2 lakhs.

They could also be fined Rs 5 lakhs if the food items being sold or produced lead to the death of consumers after consumption.

Chicken shop fined

 

A Yass café has been outed on the NSW Food Authority’s name and shame register this week.
King Charcoal Chicken in Comur Street was fined $440 for failing to comply with food safety standards.
The authority said a food handler had been caught smoking in a food handling area on July 19 this year, despite being warned about it previously.
The café was added to the public name and shame register on Tuesday.
Owner Georgina Karadonis declined to comment.
Authorities said smoking cigarettes within a food preparation area was unacceptable.
“Smoking in food preparation areas is a serious breach of food safety standards and the business concerned has been penalised accordingly, which is consistent with how these types of matters are dealt with by councils under the Food Act 2003 throughout NSW,” a NSW Food Authority spokesperson said.
Primary Industries Minister Katrina Hodgkinson is on medical leave and could not comment.
It is the seventh restaurant or café within the Yass Valley shire to be named and shamed during the past year.

Five quintals of synthetic mawa seized

About five quintals of synthetic mawa, suspected of containing urea, was seized during a raid at a manufacturing site in village Sadharanpur here, food safety department officials said today.

The raid was carried out last night, Chief Food Inspector Sanjay Pandey said, adding that whitener and some other chemicals were being used to make the mawa.

The owner of the manufacturing site, Om Prakash, had already been convicted on charges of adulteration in 2009, Pandey said.

Dieticians Advise Diabetics And Heart Patients To Exercise Caution, Warn Of Adulterated Sweets

Diwali diet: Keep kilos in check with low-cal options

New Delhi: The fragrance of sweets already fills the air. Very soon pretty boxes packed with laddoos, barfis and the choicest delicacies will start piling up at homes. Diwali, after all, is incomplete without sweets. But the after-effects of bingeing can be disastrous, more so if you are on the heavier side. And if you are vulnerable to heart disease or have diabetes, you must exercise caution.
    But that doesn't mean refraining from all sweets. Dieticians and doctors suggest that the craving for sweets can be assuaged with healthier, lowcalorie alternatives like fruit yoghurts, dry fruits and dark chocolate. It will just take a little effort to ensure that you're buying and gifting the right kind of sweets. With an assortment of sweets spread out before them, even the most health conscious people end up gorging on sweets during Diwali.
    Clinical nutritionist Ishi Khosla says people tend to binge during Diwali as they see a lot sweets around them, and that stirs up their sensory faculties. “The smell and look of sweets weakens your resolve. So it’s best not to store them at home. Instead, you can distribute them to people who need them more. You can choose healthier alternatives like dates, bitter chocolates or nuts.” She also cautions people about the quality of sweets they order. For instance, fresh s a n d e s hor fruit yoghurt is far healthier than g u l a b ja m u n s. Honey or jaggery-coated nuts are also a good option.
    Dieticians suggest it is better to distribute the sweets one gets, as it reduces chances of overeating. “People can share the sweets with kids as they burn calories easily. It’s also a good idea to distribute sweets in the neighbourhood, especially because we do not know where the sweets come from. There is a high chance of adulteration,” says consultant dietician at Max Healthcare, Cheenu Prashar.
    Almost every year adulterated sweets flood Delhi’s markets to meet the huge demand. Artificial colours, which can be toxic, as well as adulterated milk and k h o y a are widely used. “We always suggest that making sweets at home is safer. At least you can pick the ingredients yourself,” says Prashar.
    Dieticians also recommend ‘guilt-free’ eating. They say worrying too much about your weight also creates problems. “This is the time when weight gain is at its peak. Diabetics become less careful about their sugar intake, and those who are predisposed to diabetes show signs of high sugar,” says consultant, endocrinology and diabetology, Moolchand Medicity, Dr Sanjiv Bhambani.
    The most common complaints after Diwali are weight gain, increased appetite and a feeling of lethargy “People complain of developing a paunch,” laughs Khosla. But it’s best if diabetics and people vulnerable to heart disease check their diet during Diwali. Their per day calorie intake should be between 1,500-1,800 calories with a proportion of 60:20:20 between carbohydrates, fats and proteins, recommends Dr Bhambani. Artificial sweeteners can be used in moderation while preparing sweets for diabetics. They should avoid excessive intake of dry fruits.

ADVISORY ON PRODUCT APPROVAL

Pre-Diwali sweep: Spurious food worth Rs25 crore destroyed

Pune: In its ongoing drive for the implementation of the Food Safety and Standard Act, 2006, the Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) has destroyed spurious food products worth Rs25 crore across the state in the last few days. These items include mava (khoya), sweets and other items.
This was informed by FDA commissioner Mahesh Zagade on Sunday. Besides, with the impending festival of Diwali, the FDA has intensified its ongoing vigil on sweet marts and mava.
“In order to keep a strict check on the movement and procurement of food supply, we have made it mandatory for all sweet marts, sweet manufactures and others to procure licences. Also, the marts have to procure raw materials for their goods from licensed agencies. This will help us identify the source of the material in case of food poisoning,” he said.
He added that the food safety officers are conducting surprise raids at mava outlets. “We have already identified the hot spots from where spurious mava enters the state and we are keeping a close watch on them,” he said.
Besides, the officers are conducting spot testing of mava in order to identify adulteration.
Zagade said, “The spot testing involves identification of the animal protein in the mava, spot seizure and destruction of the adulterated mava.”
Zagade advised citizens to purchase materials only from licensed establishments. According to him, the citizens can ask for testing of suspected food items. “This process of testing, though will incur a cost of Rs1,000 for the desired citizen, but it will also work as a deterrent for the people involved in malpractice,” he said.

Improve food safety standards in retail: Analysts

With much importance placed on FDI in retail, food analysts sought strict implementation of food safety standards.
Speaking at a conference on ‘Enhancing Food Safety in Food Retail Chains’  organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), they felt the need for revisiting and strengthening the food control systems to improve safety standards in the entire value chain of food processing.
Deputy director of Food Safety and Standards Authority of India Dr G Srinivasan said food safety (FSSAI) is a shared responsibility of all stake holders.
“As sourcing is globalised, India can become bread basket of the world if we pay more attention to standards,” he said.
According to reports, India has the second largest arabale land in the world. But despite having diverse agro-climatic zones suitable for the cultivation of a variety of crops, India’s share in global food processing is just 2.3 per cent and it lags far behind even Pakistan and Bangladesh.
“FSSAI’s overall objective is to consolidate laws related to food. It has placed emphasis on minimum effective legislation and science based legislation, and enforcement,” regulatory expert M M Chitale said.
Commenting on the agro-products wastage, principal secretary of the department of agriculture Bharat Lal Meena said wastage in agro-products is over 70 per cent in the country and this is a national waste.
“Food safety has become more relevant now as the Union government has allowed FDI in retail. Educated farmers are using integrated farming of many crops in a small area and increasing the yield and reducing wastage,” Meena said.

To Eat Out Or Not To Eat Out –The Current Dilemma

With restaurants shutting down one after another, it has added ‘food’ to his list of woes

Restaurants and hotels have been shutting down for the last few months, ever since the ‘Shawarma’ incident, which led to the death of a student. It has apparently become ‘food-conscious’. We have been aware of or at least doubtful of the quality of food that is served to us, and yet, we wait for an event of gigantic proportions, in this case death, to react. One is left to wonder whether we were always aware of our rights or is it the latest fad that everyone is following. One thing is clear; seeds of panic have been sown. We dread to eat out, we fear the food we eat and we will not be surprised if anything, (after worms and centipedes, anything seems possible) turns up in the food we eat.

The top rung restaurants come out with justifications, while the mid level ones do not even bother to do so as they wait out the probation period silently until they can start functioning again. In most cases, the restaurants get back some of their customer base. The only difference being, people are more cautious and more aware. For how long is a question best left unanswered.

The reason for the bad quality of food served in restaurants may be manifold; the unhygienic conditions, improper storage of perishables and also the bad quality of food supplied to the restaurants and hotels by the suppliers. In the Food Safety Commission’s recent crackdown on sub-standard food quality, it has been found that the restaurants ordered to be closed down have been violating several of the food safety norms.

Asked about why no express actions were taken until the issues are raised by the public, Food and Safety Commissioner, Anil Kumar said, “We have just 120 odd inspectors. We have been doing the maximum we can. With this limited manpower, it works better to respond to citizens’ complaints.” He said that there are hundreds of pending cases in the courts regarding food safety but adds on a positive note, “We will be safe soon. More and more restaurants are switching to standardised food materials.”

Abraham Chaly, owner of Café Mojo restaurant said, “All these issues are due to negligence. Restaurants should take care to meet the standards when buying food products. The mindset of the people will return to normal once hotels and restaurants begin to exercise some caution.”









Tejas, a college student in the city, said, “We have significantly cut down our restaurant visits. It is disturbing that even big names have fallen under sub-standard quality. As long as people aren’t sure that the food they eat is good or bad, their current attitude towards restaurants might not change.”

Meanwhile, another BBA graduate Chandra said, “Food served in restaurants has always been this way. Only when something happens, there is some sort of commotion. It will all settle down soon. I enjoy eating out, and will continue to do so. “

Isn’t it high time for restaurants, hotels and the Food Safety Commission to restore the people’s faith in them? Or retain the trust of customers? If they are trying to do that, why do incidents compromising food safety occur? A crackdown on the root cause of the problem is necessary, be it the source of the food or the conditions in restaurants. Citizens have to turn vigilant to assist the Food Safety Commission and report when food safety norms are compromised.

Eating home-cooked meals is the best alternative. Restaurants and hotels should rediscover their mottos of ‘Customer is God’, if not with service, then at least with the quality of food being served to them.

MPI: ‘Meat’ing Quality

MPI is a Kerala Government undertaking providing high quality meat items, easing concerns of food safety and bird flu 

With the recent focus on the poor quality of food served in restaurants and hotels, the source of the food served has come under scrutiny and it has been found that many of these restaurants do not buy meat from licensed providers with assured standards. This is not due to lack of such providers, but merely to save a little money by compromising on quality. In this scenario, a little known fact becomes highly significant  - that Kerala is home to a remarkable company named Meat Products of India Ltd. (MPI), engaged in the production and marketing of various meat and meat products. MPI holds a Category A No.1 license from the Ministry of Food Processing Industries, Government of India, since 1973 and has been providing quality and high standards of safety in its products.

MPI is a public sector undertaking of Government of Kerala with its processing plant at Koothattukulam, Ernakulam. Its products are derived from young and healthy livestock and processed using sophisticated technology to ensure high standards of hygiene, long storage time and nutritive value. MPI has not indulged in any sort of active advertising in the past and as a result, the customer base was limited. Even then, there were people and stores who stuck to it due to the quality it promised and the trust it offered.

“With the recent developments in the food scenario, there has been a rapid increase in the number of customers of MPI. People want to be assured of quality and safety,” said Udayakumar, Outlet Manager of MPI, Trivandrum. “We also hold exhibitions and seminars to make people aware of the importance of safe food,“ he added.

Dr. Saji Easow, Production Manager at MPI said, “Meat is obtained from good livestock, each stage of processing is under strict supervision and the storage is done under deep freezing conditions at -20 degrees. Everything is done in a scientific manner. This quality that MPI offers is what makes more and more people trust it.”

Suresh, proprietor of Sonu Cold Storage, Ambalamukku, said, “We have been using MPI products ever since we started our business. The quality of MPI products is assured and we can trust it absolutely.”

MPI products are available with all leading supermarkets and cold storages throughout Kerala.

The outbreak of Bird Flu outside Kerala has made the government bar its doors to the poultry and related products from outside its borders. MPI has come to the rescue with a mobile van service in the city, selling products in different parts of the city throughout the day.

The timings are as follows:

10.00 a.m. to 11.00 a.m.at Kesavadasapuram

 11.00 a.m.to 12.00 noon at Pattom

 1.00 p.m. to 2.00 p.m.at Vellayambalam

 3.00 p.m.to 4.00 p.m.at Vazhuthacaud

 4.30 p.m.to 6.30 p.m.in front of the Secretariat on all days

 4.00 p.m.to 7.00 p.m. at Connemera market (Palayam) on all days except Sundays

 8.00 am to 12.00 noon at Connemera market on Sundays.

Gutkha ban `discriminatory`, cigarettes still sold: STA

New Delhi: With 14 state governments banning gutkha, an association working for the welfare of smokeless tobacco growers has termed the ban as "discriminatory", saying cigarettes and beedis were still being sold in the market.

Smokeless Tobacco Association also said the sale of gutkha cannot be banned under the Food Safety and Standards Regulation Act-2011 as it has been done now, as gutkha has been classified as a tobacco product under the Cigarette and Other Tobacco Products Act-2003 (COTPA).

Members of the association met Union Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad and explained to him how the ban on gutkha in 14 states, as advised by the Centre, was affecting the lives of four crore people who eke out their living by growing tobacco, said CK Sharma, a member of the association.

Sharma, who was part of the delegation that met Azad, said the Health Ministry has promised to set up a sub-committee to look into the issue and come up with suitable recommendations.

He said gutkha has now been banned after the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India classified it as a food product and advocated its ban.

"This is discriminatory because cigarette and beedi, which have more tobacco content than gutkha, are being sold freely while gutkha is banned. The ban should be removed as gutkha is not a food product," Sharma said.

However, he said gutkha manufacturers were open to any kind of regulation under the COTPA and noted that they were already complying with rules that make it mandatory to print a statutory and a pictorial warning.

The states which have banned sale of gutkha are Rajasthan, Haryana, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Maharashtra, Kerala, Bihar, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Manipur, Arunachal Pradesh, Delhi and Goa.

FDA plans anti-adulteration drive sans staff

Agency officials have been directed to check banned substances in sweets

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) minister Manohar Naik has decided to go tough on food adulteration in sweets this Diwali. He held a meeting where he directed officials to carry out a drive to check for adulteration and the use of banned substances in sweets by collecting samples from sweet manufacturing units and shops. Earlier, the minister of state for FDA, Satej Patil had also directed officials to carry out a similar drive to clamp down on the supply of adulterated sweets and food items in the market, especially during the festive season. On their part, the officials are surprised as to how ministers go on issuing orders when the department does not have enough staff to carry out raids and collect samples. Out of the 260 sanctioned posts of Food Safety Officers (earlier called Food Inspectors) in the state, the department has only 209 inspectors. Similarly, the number of sanctioned posts of Assistant Commissioners are 62, but as of now the department manages with just 27. The number of sanctioned posts for Joint Commissioners are eight and the number of posts filled are six. Besides, the department has not even recruited enough analysts to carry out lab tests too. There are about two and half lakh stores in state, while there are about 40,000 in the city, which sell food and related items in the state and come under the jurisdiction of the FDA. “How are we expected to function with such skeletal staff and carry out checks on a large scale,” asked an official. Earlier, FDA commissioner Mahesh Zagade had informed that action would be initiated against erring officials who did not implement rules and regulations of the Food Safety and Standards Act 2006 and had warned of punitive action against those who failed to perform their duties.

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Get your fats right

From zeroing in on the right combination of oils and their correct usage, to knowing the good fats from the bad ones, here's some kitchen wisdom we could all use.

 First let's start with the fact — fat is not necessarily bad. In fact, fat is integral to our health. Unfortunately, due to a lot of misinformation, fat has become a bad word in a skinny-aspiring world. There are good fats or essential fats, and bad fats. The key is to know the sources of both and strike the right balance. The body definitely requires some essential fatty acids. 20-30 per cent of total calories in a diet must come from fats. Sources of good fat include nuts, seeds, fatty fish and cold pressed oils. Foods containing monounsaturated fats (MUFA) reduce low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, which makes them desirable for the body.

MUFA are found in mustard, rice bran, sesame, rapeseed, groundnut and olive oil. Along with the quantity of fat, the quality of fat is also important. A diet high in MUFA, with no transfats can be helpful. Fried food contains the undesirable and fattening trans-fatty acids. Sources of trans-fats include food from halwais, cheap eateries, Indian snacks like fried namkeens, pakoras, samosa, kachori, paapri chaat, golgappas, tikki, Indian sweets like patisa, gulab jamun, jalebi, imarti and majority of Indian preparations at dhabas or restaurants like dal makhni, butter chicken and shahi paneer. Choose a variety of vegetable oils instead of a single source. This is because most of the vegetable oils don't have an ideal mix of fats. Go for blended oils such as mustard, canola, sesame, rice bran and olive oil.

Kick refined oils out of the window. They have dominated the Indian households for two decades now, giving us imbalanced fats and are responsible for various heart problems, cancer, gall bladder stones and for disturbing the overall immune system.

High heat refining takes the oil to a very high temperature where its goodness (vitamins and antioxidants) gets destroyed. Therefore, choose less-refined or cold pressed oils instead. They retain all their flavour, aroma, and nutritional value. Olive, peanut and sunflower are among the oils that are obtained through cold pressing.

Do not heat the oil without food for more than a minute.

Oils with high smoking point should be chosen for frying. Smoking point of an oil is the temperature at which it starts emitting a blue haze, indicating formation of decomposition products.

Most vegetable oils have adequately high smoking points while butter and coconut oil are not suitable for frying due to low smoking point.

What's even better than using the best oils is to substitute it with their original sources. For instance, have sunflower seeds, peanuts and almonds instead of their oil variations.

The writer is a clinical nutritionist and founder of theweightmonitor.

All that lives in your ready-to-eat food

Do you know where your food comes from? Pic: Anurag Gumbhar

How safe are the products at the supermarkets?
When I pick  over-packed foods at the supermarket, I recall the way my mother would judge each product carefully when local stores were more in vogue.   Today, as working mothers who don’t have time to cook, employees staying away from home or students who  are hostile towards hostel food, all of us rejoice in these ready-to–eat and ready-to– cook food products.  These may very well come to the rescue of busy lives but could be costing us our health in the long term.
We might check the labels, manufacturing date, best before date before purchase etc of perishable foods. But no matter how much we scrutinize the food, all foods –  be it the energy drink or milk bread, juice or vegetables –  all bear frightening facts, right from processing to your plate.
Ready-to-cook packaged foods such as dosa, panneer, idlis, french fries and chicken cutlets contain high amounts of salt and saturated fats. These items are factory treated with chemicals and kept under high temperatures. Do you know how the following common food items are stored and processed?
Meat: How do we judge the meat sold in packets? We would look for the red colour in the meat and of course, the label that says ‘will last longer.’
We will have to get down to basics to understand how fresh the packaged meat is. Sea food  such as fish fingers and prawns have travelled miles first by boat and then to packing industries where they are slaughtered, frozen, de-frosted and re-frozen by the time they reach the shelf in a supermarket.
The red colour in the chicken or mutton is preserved to gain customer satisfaction with high technology or chemicals. Sodium and potassium salts are added to prevent bacterial growth. They are never made available for sale immediately a day after slaughter and the packets are kept for nine days or longer before sale.
Milk: The most prominent in food consumption in every household are dairy products- Milk, Ghee, Curd, Cheese and Butter. There has been many hassles about the adulteration of milk in the conventional packet milk that the milkman delivers daily. What about supermarkets?
The tetra packets that contain milk  are processed using synthetics and other industrial methods. The milk powders are adulterated with detergent, bleaching powder or toxic substances. Unfortunately there is no recommendable solution to escape from this vicious cycle.
Eggs: They have a different stale story. The neatly packed eggs are usually not  brought within seven days of laying into the supermarket. Experts say that eggs which are above seven days old would become more liquid and lose taste. It’s apparently impossible to buy fresh eggs because the supermarkets do not print the laying date on the packets.
Juice: These come as syrups and are sold as concentrates. They are pasturised with heat and said to last for as long as six months to one year. Originally they may have a shelf life of eight days.
Fruits:   The dew drop fresh look from oranges and lemons is deceptive as it is coated with a thin layer of wax to preserve the outer appearance which we customers look for. Even vegetables are not spared. They are either coloured or pesticide treated as they have to travel long distances from farm to supermarket. Apples would have travelled for at least  three months by the time of consumption. The plastic covers in which they are packed sometimes save the fruits from staling.
Bread:This is baked using enzymes or acids and it takes two days to get to the market. The best before date would just be a nominal one as they are well tempered to uphold the softness.
Bisphenol A (BPA) It is a compound which is used to make water bottles, baby feeding bottles, plastics and packing paper. It is used in coatings of tins and cans to avoid the food to come in direct contact with the metal. All the read-to-eat food packets, frozen foods like meat and cheese, fruits, juice, veggies are all packed with materials made out of this.

The artificial food is  sugar treated and contains saturated and trans fats which increase  cholesterol levels.   Adding to these impairments are the perils posed by Bisphenol A which is a substance that alters the functioning of natural hormones, interfere with their production and secretion.
We can’t initiate a purchase unless it is labeled ‘BPA free’.
Today the food packing industry churns a turnover of $15 billion and is projected to earn $30 billion by 2015.
Owing to the growing supermarket culture, obesity is an alarming disease among Indians addicted to packaged food and we are advancing towards becoming a diabetic country. It has been realized through a survey that 82% of urban Indians are vulnerable to chronic diseases due to canned food.
The Ministry of food processing in India passed the Food Safety and Standards Act 2006, according to which all the supermarkets selling packed food should meet certain thresholds set by them. Most companies do not adhere to the standards and violate threshold limits in percentage composition such as the percentage of Bisphenol A and various salts used.
In my personal opinion, limiting consumption of canned food and avoiding buying food which is unpackaged is not always possible or convenient. But these do signify industrial involvement and all that comes with it. Maybe a mix of purchasing a few items from the small retail shops and vendors would be a good mix.

FSSAI Advisory on Product Approval

DINAKARAN NEWS

DINATHANTHI NEWS

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Unique punishment for adulteration in Rajasthan

Jaipur: A grocery shop and a sweet shop in Rajasthan have been meted out unique punishment by a court for adulteration. The owners will have to put up signboards saying they are adulterators.

The shops are situated in Bhilwara town, around 250 km from here.

The court of an additional district magistrate Tuesday gave its orders in two cases of adulteration. Besides imposing a fine of Rs.1.10 lakh on the two shops, the owners have been asked to put up boards at places which should be easily visible to customers.

The boards will carry the words: "I am an adulterator", said Bhilwara's Food Security Officer Devendra Singh Ranawat.

Ranawat said Rama Sweets, owned by Suwalal Sharma in the town's Bazaar Number 3, was raided by a Food Security Department team March 8.

"Samples of the sweets had been collected from the shop on a complaint of adulteration. The samples were sent to a laboratory. It was found that the sweets were adulterated," said Ranawat.

The officer said a case was registered against Sharma for food adulteration.

Similarly, samples of refined oil being sold by Shakti Bardana Bhandar were collected Oct 24.

"The oil too was found adulterated following which a case was registered against the shop's owner, one Rakesh Kumar Agrawal. Both the cases came up for hearing in additional district magistrate Teekamchand Bohra's court," said the officer.

The officer said it was a unique order and a first of its kind punishment for adulteration.

"The sign boards would be a warning for the customers at these two shops to purchase items with caution as their owners have been caught and punished for adulteration. It would be a lesson for other shopkeepers who indulge in adulteration during the festive season," said a senior Bhilwara district administration officer.

The Rajasthan government had last week announced a special 'Shudh Ke Liye Yudh' campaign against adulteration.

The campaign was launched keeping in view increasing complaints of adulteration in sweets and other food items.

DINAMALAR NEWS

Makers of fake brands and inferior food fined

‘The traders who failed to meet quality standards would be fined up to Rs five lakh. The traders indulging in sale of inferior food will be punished with imprisonment’

Eluru: West Godavari District Joint Collector Dr T Baburao Naidu warned businessmen selling inferior quality foods and fake brands with fining heavily as per latest laws. Whipping his legal powers as an authority under Food Safety and Standards Act, he organised a court for trial of dozen cases of adulteration of food at Collectorate here on Wednesday.

Speaking on the occasion, he said the traders who failed to meet quality standards would be fined up to Rs five lakh. He warned the traders indulging in sale of inferior food with imprisonment. The guilty would be tried under the law. A fine of Rs three lakh would be imposed with respect to traders selling fake brand food products. For preparation of food products under unhygienic conditions, the authorities could penalise the traders up to Rs one lakh, he said.

The legal authority on implementation of law said that the act enacted in 2006 would safeguard consumers from adulteration and harmful ingredients in food. Any violation of rules would enable the authorities to fine the traders up to Rs 10 lash, besides 10 years of imprisonment, he warned.

The Joint Collector said a penalty of Rs five lakh and jail term of six months would be slapped against the businessmen engaged in food preparation without licence. After the enactment of new law, as many as 12 cases of violation were registered in the district, he said.

The cases the Joint Collector conducted trial included two adulteration of chilli and turmeric products, seven cooking oil and vanaspati, two contaminated water and one inferior quality ghee. While five cases were posted for hearing on November 24, food product makers in five cases were fined on Wednesday. He asked the authorities to submit detailed reports regarding adulteration of chilli and turmeric powder cases.

Dr Baburao Naidu requested people to inform the food authorities about adulteration and fake brand sales of food products on phone No 08812230443. He asked the consumers to demand bills from the traders for their purchases to make their cases more effective in case of any violation of law.

FSSAI under food law introduces rules for new food products entering India

With continuous innovation and research happening in the area of foods, a lot of new products and new ingredients can be seen coming into the food segment especially under the nutraceutical and functional food category.

A lot of foods imported into the country also may contain ingredients which are being introduced in India for the first time.

Under the PFA (Prevention of Food Adulteration Act) regime, there was no provision to regulate such foods. The FSSAI ( Food Safety and Standards Authority of India) under the new food law has introduced a regulation providing for requirement of new food product/ingredient approval before obtaining a license for the manufacturing of such foods.

The requirements

It has been provided under Schedule 1 of FSS (Licensing & Registration) Regulation, 2011 that food business operators manufacturing food containing ingredients or using technologies that do not have a history of safety or having ingredients which are introduced in the country for the first time need to obtain FSSA licence. According to the Food Authority, such FBOs must apply for product approval before applying for a central licence.

Who all are covered

All the food business operators who are manufacturing or importing any article of food containing ingredients or substances or employing processes or technologies whose safety has not been established. It also includes any food article containing ingredients or employing technologies which do not have a history of safe use.

The process

Applicant must apply for every product or ingredient approval separately in the format prescribed by the authority. Application must be made with a demand draft of Rs 25,000 in favour of senior accounts officer, FSSAI payable at Delhi.

This payment shall be made towards initial screening of the application by the Approval Screening Committee. The envelope must be superscribed with the heading "New Product/Ingredient Approval".

The committee will decide whether the product shall fall under either of the categories mentioned above. Category A shall include applications where the product safety can be established.

Applications where further assessment is required are classified under category B. They will be sent to scientific committee. The applicant will have to furnish an additional payment of Rs 25,000.

Furnishing information

The format provided for application describes extensively the information and data supporting to be provided by the applicant. Administrative information, technical details, information on efficacy and nutritional impact of the product are the aspects to be covered by the applicant.

Technical information is the second section of the application. Name of the new ingredient or new product must be provided. In case of product application, the common name, product composition and the brand name if applicable must be provided.

With respect to new ingredient application, the chemical or other name, name of the food in which it is proposed to be used along with the concentration, and the brand name must be provided.

The functional use of the product/ingredient as defined along with its composition and its affects and side-effects for different category of people (like children, pregnant women etc) must be detailed in the application.

FBOs’ licensing & registration process across India makes slow progress

The licensing and registration of food business operators (FBOs), FSSAI’s mega campaign to bring all the FBOs and food processing companies under the umbrella of the Food Safety & Standards (Licensing & Registration of Food Businesses) Regulations, 2011, is once again in rough weather.

The programme, which was given a six-month extension to its previous deadline of August 4, 2012, could not utilise it properly as many states did not start the registration and licensing process as was expected of them. The regulations under FSSR for licensing and registration were first notified on August 5, 2011.

In some states, the state of affairs is shocking. For example, officials in-charge of licensing and registration in some states admitted to that the process was yet to start. Meanwhile, the online process, the software for which was developed with much fanfare, was also started on a trial basis in some states but even this could not gain the required momentum.

No wonder, a top official from FSSAI, on the condition of anonymity, informed FnB News, “Relaxation will be given to those states who have not yet started the process of registering and licensing the FBOs under the new regulations.”

As for Maharashtra, K B Sankhe, joint commissioner (food), FDA, Maharashtra, explained, “In Maharashtra, around 2,60,000 FBOs have already registered and licensed. Many FBOs are coming ahead to get themselves registered and licensed before the deadline of February 4, 2013. We are also organising awareness camps at many places in Maharashtra to make all the small and big food business operators aware about the importance of registration and licensing. Even though we initiated with online registration and licensing, the process through online is very slow.”

B Vijayan, food safety commissioner, Goa, stated, “More than 60 per cent of FBOs have been registered and licensed in Goa. The online process has not been successful here and the ratio is 70:30. Lack of awareness about online registration and licensing has forced many FBOs to apply manually.”

Talking about the progress in Gujarat, H G Koshia, food safety commissioner, FDCA, Gujarat, said, “We have registered and licensed more than 70,000 food business operators. Most of the registration and licensing was done manually and not online. The reason for this was lack of English and computer knowledge.

However, he added, “We are continuously organising awareness camps to make all FBOs aware about the importance of getting registered and licensed.”

Raji Srivastava, food safety commissioner, Punjab commented, “We have been conducting various awareness camps to make all the FBOs aware about the importance of getting themselves registered and licensed. The awareness camps organised by us are helping us to get more people to come ahead and get themselves licensed and registered. Till October 10, 2012, 4,576 and 24,599 FBOs have been issued licences and registration respectively.”

Meanwhile, Ashish Kumar, designated officer (headquarter), Bihar, said, “More than 14,000 FBOs from Bihar already have their licences and registration in place. We are waiting for more FBOs to come ahead and get them registered and licensed before the deadlines. They should not rush at last moment. We have also asked various organisations of FBOs to arrange awareness camps themselves and get more people for registration and licence. The online process is yet to start in our state.”

S Rajan, statistical officer, Food and Drugs Administration (FDA), Tamil Nadu, said, “Till date we have licensed and registered 1,51,310 FBOs. The number of FBOs who have been licensed are 17,316 and those who have registered themselves are 1,33,994. We are sure that before the deadlines we will be able to complete the process of licensing and registering of all the FBOs in the state. The process is offline because online work is under process.

Regulation 3.2.1 registration of petty food business
Every petty food manufacturer shall register themselves with the registering authority by submitting an application for registration in Form A under Schedule 2 of these regulations along with a fee as provided in Schedule 3.

The FBOs shall follow the basic hygiene and safety requirements provided in Schedule 4 (Part I) of these regulations and provide a self-attested declaration of adherence to these requirements with the application in the format provided in Annexure-1 under Schedule 2.

The registering authority shall consider the application and may either grant registration or reject it with reasons to be recorded in writing or issue notice for inspection, within 7 days of receipt of an application for registration. In the event of an inspection being ordered, the registration shall be granted by the registering authority after being satisfied with the safety, hygiene and sanitary conditions of the premises within a period of 30 days.

If registration is not granted, or denied, or inspection not ordered within 7 days as provided in above Sub-regulation (3) or no decision is communicated within 30 days as provided in above Sub-regulation (4), the food business operator may start his business, provided that it will be incumbent on the FBOs to comply with any improvement suggested by the registering authority at any later time provided that registration shall not be refused without giving the applicant an opportunity of being heard and for reasons to be recorded in writing. The registering authority shall issue a registration certificate and a photo identity card, which shall be displayed at prominent place at all times within the premises or vehicle or cart or any other place where the person carries on sale/manufacture of food in case of petty food business. The registering authority or any officer or agency specifically authorized for this purpose shall carry out food safety inspection of the registered establishments at least once in a year.

Regulation 3.2.2 license for food business
Subject to regulation 3.2.1 no person shall commence any food business unless he possesses a valid license under these regulations. Provided that any person or food business operator carrying on food business on the date of notification of these regulations, under a license, registration or permission, as the case may be, under the acts or orders mentioned in the second schedule of the act shall enable the licensing authority to collect complete information of all food establishments, get their existing license converted into the license/registration under these regulations by making an application to the licensing/registering authority within one year of notification of these regulations. No license fee will have to be paid for the remaining period of the validity of the earlier license or registration granted under any of the said acts or orders non-compliance with this provision by a food business operator will attract penalty under section 55 of the act. Provided further that any food business operator holding registration/license under any other act/order as specified under schedule 2 of the FSS Act, 2006, with no specific validity or expiry date, and other wise entitled to obtain a license under these regulations, shall have to apply and obtain a registration/license under these regulations within one year from the date of notification by paying the applicable fees.

DINAKARAN NEWS

Food items brought to Raj Bhavan kitchen rejected

Food Safety officials are said to have detected and rejected certain items, which were brought to the Raj Bhavan kitchen here on Tuesday to prepare food for the President during his visit to the State, on grounds that they were unfit for consumption. Food Safety Commissioner in-charge K. Anil Kumar said inspections of items brought for preparation of food for VVIPs were a standard procedure and if any of them were found to be of sub-standard quality, the norm was to reject them and replace the same with superior-quality ones. The same had happened on Tuesday, he said, stating that “one or two items” were replaced. A report on the same was expected on Wednesday. Similar procedures were followed when inedible materials were detected during a visit of A.P.J. Abdul Kalam when he was the President as well, Mr. Anil Kumar said, stressing that it was ensured that Mr. Mukherjee was served only safe food. Unconfirmed reports said at least six items were rejected, including cashew nuts and other spices, from a total of about 350 items.

Ads term gutkha ban unfair

Analysts call the ads misleading; health ministry plans action against industry

Pertinent question: Why not ban cigarette?THE photographed ad on this page is one of the many ads that has been appearing in leading print and electronic media of the country since September. Issued by the gutkha industry, the ads term the ban on the chewing tobacco unfair and question why the government has not banned cigarette.
Since the introduction of the Food Safety and Standards Authority Act (FSSA) rules in August 2011, as many as 14 states have banned gutkha, known to be responsible for 80 per cent of oral cancer cases in the country.
The ads prompted non-profits campaigning against gutkha to call an urgent press meet on October 18. The meet was also participated by representatives from the health ministry. Justifying the ban, Amal Pusp, director with the ministry, said, the government chose to ban gutkha as a higher number of people consume it. Of the 274.9 million adult tobacco users in India, 75 per cent consume smokeless tobacco, Pusp said. Vulnerable groups like women and teenagers consume more gutkha than cigarette. About 18 per cent women consume smokeless tobacco, while only 3 per cent smoke tobacco, including bidi, he said, citing figures from Global Adult Tobacco Survey of 2010.
Pusp, however, showed helplessness when fielded questions related to weak regulations on cigarette. “I agree that cigarette is equally harmful but till now there is no legislation under which it can be banned,” he said. Both cigarette and gutkha are covered under the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act (COTPA) of 2003, which only regulates tobacco products. Gutkha could be banned only after FSSA came into being. The Act considers gutkha as a food product and allows banning any food item containing injurious substance like nicotine. Unfortunately, cigarette is not a food item, Pusp added.
A representative of Smokeless Tobacco Association, who does not wish to be named, alleges that the ministry is siding with the cigarette lobby using the policy loopholes. While supporting the ban, Jagdeep Chhokar of the Association of Democratic Reforms, says, “ITC Ltd, which controls 80 per cent of the Indian cigarette market, has been one of the major donors for political parties, including the Congress.” The Delhi non-profit recently studied the source of funds to political parties.
Claims busted
One of the many facts cited in the advertisement reads like this: “1 pouch of gutkha contains 0.2 gram of tobacco verses 0.63 grams in cigarette.” Bhavna Mukhopadhyay, executive director of non-profit Voluntary Health Association of India, terms this misleading. “The size of gutkha pouch varies from 1g to 3.5 g, which changes the percentage of tobacco in the mix. Moreover, there is no authentic estimate of contents for gutkha,” she says. Another fact claims that a cigarette contains 4,000 chemicals while gutkha has only 3,000. Monika Arora, director, health promotion and tobacco control of non-profit Public Health Foundation of India (PHFI), says, smokeless tobacco may have fewer chemicals but as many as 28 of them are carcinogenic. “Even a single cancer-causing chemical is enough to cause disease, disability and death,” she adds.
The ad also claims that over 40 million people have lost their livelihood because of the ban. “Government estimates show that the total employment in the formal sector by the tobacco industry was seven million in 2004-05. It can’t come close to 40 million even if one adds employment by the informal sector,” Arora says.
She also refutes the claim that farmers are growing tobacco in around 700,000 ha in the country. As per the Directorate of Tobacco Development, the area under cultivation for smokeless tobacco is just 40,000 ha. “The industry is trying to hide behind the livelihood issue when it is only concerned with its profits that are badly affected due to the ban,” says Mukhopadhyay. The Central Tobacco Research Institute in Andhra Pradesh has identified that crops like sugarcane, maize, paddy and cotton can be grown on the same soil, offering the farmers an alternative livelihood option. Besides, according to a 2010 Planning Commission report, the annual revenue generated by the gutkha industry is US $1.62 billion. But the expenditure on treatment of major diseases caused by it is six times more.
“Constitutionally, all states should have implemented the ban,” Pusp said at the press meet. “We have written to all states but they are taking their time.” However, the main contention of the ad that cigarette should be banned remains and the government has no plan for it.

FSSAI ADVT.

Now, a double caffeine kick in energy drinks

Food safety regulator increases the permissible caffeine limit from 145 ppm to 320 ppm; however, FDA officials are unaware of the change

Your energy drinks will now pack a double dose of caffeine. According to the new standards as directed by the Food Safety Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), the caffeine content in an energy drink has been increased from 145 parts per million (ppm) to 320 ppm.

Pumped up: According to the new regulations, the caffeine limits have been increased to 320 ppm. Initially, the limit was 200 ppm, which was reduced in 2009 to 145 ppm. Pic For Representation

The FSSAI has increased the caffeine limits by almost 175 ppm as compared to the previous permissible limits. Initially, caffeine limits for carbonated beverages were capped at 200 ppm. In 2009 owing to the Centre for Science and Environment — a public interest research organisation — the limit was scaled down to 145 ppm.
Confusing limits
However, the increase as declared by the FSSAI is still unknown to several officials and only came to light when representatives from Red Bull showed officials from the Thane Food and Drug Administration (FDA) a letter highlighting the rise as their energy drinks worth crores of rupees had been seized for exceeding the caffeine limits.
“The company representatives approached us with an official letter from FSSAI, which showed that the permissible limits had been raised to 320 ppm. Hence, we released their seized material, which we had taken in considering the old limit,” said Kishore Gore, FDA officer from the Thane division.
According to Red Bull India: “Red Bull Energy Drink fully complies with the local laws and regulations of more than 164 countries, including India. A 250ml can of Red Bull contains the same amount of caffeine as a cup of coffee [80 mg or 320ppm]. The Indian health authorities have repeatedly confirmed that Red Bull Energy Drink conforms to Indian laws and regulations.”
However, Suresh Deshmukh, joint commissioner food, Greater Mumbai said that he had refused to release the seized drinks, as they hadn’t received any official confirmation from FSSAI, Delhi. “The company approached us stating the permissible limit for caffeine has increased from 145 ppm to 320 ppm. But, we haven’t received any confirmation. We have also asked the company to send us the letter so that we can verify it,” said Deshmukh.
Not ‘pumped’ up
The increase in caffeine levels in these drinks has left a bitter taste in the mouths of few. Prerna Shah, a resident of Juhu, said, “Permitting 320 ppm is not a good idea. Companies are already flouting norms and this will allow them to do so even more. The government should not permit this, as youngsters are already addicted to this. A further rise will be detrimental to their health.”
Echoing the same sentiments, Hemang Mitra, a bar consultant, said, “Energy drinks are heavily marketed to young adults. It is as good as selling drugs like cocaine. Many of these drinks are heavily promoted in bars to use with alcohol. There are a number of scientific reports on the adverse consequences of excessive consumption of caffeine.”
Did you know?
Countries like Denmark, Uruguay and Turkey have banned energy drinks altogether while Sweden has banned its sale among children. The European Food Safety Authority mandates that energy drinks with over 150 ppm caffeine content should be labelled as ones with “high caffeine content” and the exact amount should be indicated. Australia has banned energy drinks with over 320 ppm caffeine level and proposes to classify them as pharmaceutical products.
Not ‘energy drinks’
In June, responding to health concerns, the FSSAI had said that all energy drinks having high caffeine limits would be called caffeinated drinks instead of energy drinks. It also said that these drinks would come with a statutory safety warning.