Sep 18, 2019
Check on adulterated palm jaggery
For long, a section of producers in Thoothukudi have been selling adulterated palm jaggery.
Norms laid down for manufacturers and traders
Following complaints regarding widespread adulteration of palm jaggery in the district, the Food Safety Department has planned to crack down on manufacturers making adulterated jaggery, as time sought by producers and traders to comply with the norms came to an end on September 15.
The adulteration affects consumers, many of whom suffer from various ailments like diabetes, who consider palm jaggery a healthy alternative to sugar. But sugar, which is a cheaper sweetener, found its way into palm jaggery as an adulterant.
“For long, a section of producers have been selling adulterated palm jaggery. Due to lack of labelling of ingredients in retail sale, there is no transparency,” says V. Gunaselan, a social activist in Udangudi, which is well known for its ‘panakarupatti.’ “While jaggery can be produced for a few months from March to August, those who adulterate the product continue to produce it round the year.”
It makes production of unadulterated palm jaggery unsustainable for producers. “The price of jaggery in the market suffers steep cut due to cheaper adulterated product,” says A. Ravi of Thoothukudi South District Vanigar Sangangalin Peravai, who also produces palm jaggery. “It has become more difficult to find palm tappers, who continue to leave the profession. As a result, migrant workers are brought from places like Nagercoil and wages go up making the business unsustainable,” he says.
Following an amendment to the Food Safety and Standards Regulations, standards for jaggery and cane jaggery were created. The norms have a clear distinction between jaggery, prepared from palmyra palm, date palm or coconut palm, and cane jaggery made by boiling or processing juice pressed from sugarcane.
In August, based on the instruction of the Collector after complaints, two meetings were held in Thoothukudi with producers and traders. “Only if jaggery is produced from pathaneer and not mixed with sugar, should it be labeled as panakarupatti (palm jaggery) or panakarkandu (palm candy or misri). Even if one % of sugar is mixed, it would be considered as adulterated, and the inventory will be seized,” officials told the stakeholders during the meeting.
Various other instructions including implementation of good hygienic practices in manufacturing, labelling clearly whether it is palm or cane jaggery, both in Tamil and English, installation of a pest control system were given to producers and retailers.
R. Karunakaran, Designated Officer for Food Safety, said only 27 out of about 180 manufacturers in the district have valid licences. “Some producers have started labelling their products in compliance with the norms,” he says.
He said the department would collect samples from producers, wholesale distributors and retail shops, who would be fined a minimum of ₹1 lakh, if found to be not complying with the norms.
Dr. Karunakaran has a few tips for consumers. “Unadulterated palm jaggery would not be very hard, and would be less sweet compared to adulterated one. On exposure to air, it would become sticky and will be medium brown in colour. As pathaneer has lime content, it would have a slight bitter taste,” he says.
Adulterated ghee seized in Tiruppur
B. Vijayalalithambigai (second left), Designated Officer, FSSAI, seizing the adulterated ghee at a house in Velliangadu, Tiruppur, on Sunday.
Sellers use palmolein oil and vanaspati to prepare the ghee
Nearly 500 litres of adulterated ghee was seized by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) officials from seven houses at Velliangadu in Tiruppur on Sunday.
A team led by B. Vijayalalithambigai, Designated Officer, FSSAI (Tiruppur), raided the houses following the seizure of 13 litres of adulterated ghee from a seller on a two-wheeler on Mangalam Road in Avinashi. The seven ghee sellers were from Sivaganga.
Dr. Vijayalalithambigai told The Hindu that the samples were sent to laboratories on Wednesday and further action would be taken based on the test results. Upon investigation, the officials discovered that the sellers used palmolein oil and vanaspati to prepare the ghee. For the colour, they had used certain seeds that imparted yellow colour and added artificial essence for aroma, she said.
“The ghee was being sold for ₹ 240 per litre, which is half the market price of pure ghee. Regular intake of adulterated ghee will harm the digestive system, particularly that of children,” Dr. Vijayalalithambigai said.
On September 7, the FSSAI officials seized 1,310 litres of palmolein oil from a company on Palladam Road for failing to meet the standards of Food Safety and Standards Act.
In a press release, Dr. Vijayalalithambigai warned public to avoid buying substandard ghee from those who sell it on two-wheelers. Anyone who finds sale of adulterated food may report it to FSSAI via WhatsApp at 94440 42322, the release said.
Beekeepers ‘stung’ by food safety watchdog’s amended rules
KOCHI: Honey, whose USP as a natural sweetener is nearly as long as mankind itself, has now left a bitter taste in beekeepers’ mouths following the amendment of the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India’s (FSSAI) quality parameters on moisture content in the natural produce. As per the FSSAI, the standard moisture content of honey should be below 20 per cent. However, honey produced by farmers in Kerala is found to have a moisture content of 20- 25 per cent.
So it is deemed lowquality and hence unsaleable. The beekepers have urged the government to take up the issue with FSSAI. They are also planning to seek legal recourse if indeed the attempts do not bear fruit. According to Sunil B, divisional engineer, Kerala Agro Industries Corporation and the implementing officer of the Centrally-sponsored beekeeping schemes, the Central authority set the parameter after taking into consideration the honey produced in northern India.
“The climatic conditions in north Indian states and Kerala couldn’t be anymore different. Also, the bees used to produce honey vary,” he said. “The sizzling climate of Kerala is the main reason for the high moisture content in the honey being produced here. Also, farmers in Kerala use Apis cerana indica or Indian honey bee while Italian bees are used up north,” said Sunil. And the honey produced by Indian bees has a higher moisture content compared to those from Italian bees. “Another factor which ought to be taken note of is the difficulty in using Italian bees at honey farms in Kerala.
They can’t survive in the Kerala climate,” he said. According to him, Agmark and other quality control agencies, both domestic and international, have taken into consideration all these factors while fixing the parameters. “Earlier, the parameters set by FSSAI were the same as that of the other quality control agencies,” said Sunil. Philip Mathew, a beekeeper, said the farmers are afraid to market their produce. “Recently, after the FSSAI amendment, samples were taken from various brands.
One brand sold by a beekeeper at Angamaly and Perumbavoor was found to have 21.3 per cent moisture. He was slapped with a `10 lakh fine,” said Philip. As of now, production of honey has fallen 60 per cent in the state. “If the state government doesn’t take steps to help out the farmers, Kerala honey, which is famous among domestic and international consumers, might disappear from the market forever,” he said. After the farmers and the organisations associated with honey production in the state approached the state government seeking help, Agriculture Minister V S Sunil Kumar directed Kerala Agriculture University (KAU) to conduct a study and submit a report.
No more plastic: Hotels to serve drinking water in reusable glass bottles
The latest directions of FSSAI also specify that these glass bottles should not be kept for sale outside the hotel premises.
This move, issued in a notification of Food Safety and Standards Association of India (FSSAI) on September 9, comes after the authority found that packaged plastic bottles in hotels generated enormous plastic waste.
Soon, hotels across the country will have to replace plastic bottles completely and serve drinking water in reusable glass bottles with paper seals for free.
In June last year, Maharashtra had banned packaged drinking water below 200 ml, among other single-use plastic items. While many states have similar bans on plastic in place, the central government plans to do away with single-use plastic items including plastic bags, cutlery and packaging material, among others.
This move, issued in a notification of Food Safety and Standards Association of India (FSSAI) on September 9, comes after the authority found that packaged plastic bottles in hotels generated enormous plastic waste.
“The hotels will have to serve water to their guests in glass bottles, mentioning details of the hotel. For this, hotels will need to set up an in-house drinking water bottling system on its premise. All sanitation and hygienic conditions will need to be adhered to as per standard norms,” the notification stated.
The latest directions of FSSAI also specify that these glass bottles should not be kept for sale outside the hotel premises.
The bottle’s make, BIS specification of the drinking water and packaging standards will have to be adhered to as per the prescribed norms of IS 10500 : 2012 and FSS Act 2006 specifications, respectively.
Allow reuse of PET drinking water bottles: experts
India may consider making PET bottles reusable and allow them to be used for packaging water more than once if the government agrees to recommendations made by experts drawn from various departments and scientific institutions.
Currently, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) doesn’t allow the repeated use of PET drinking water bottles. On the contrary, the experts from various ministries as well as Bureau of Indian Standards, Council of Scientific and Industrial Research and Indian Institute of Packaging think that it should be allowed as the move may reduce the use of single-use plastics considerably.
This suggestion came up during a high-level meeting organised at the behest of the Ministry of Consumer Affairs on September 9, said V K Duindi, Deputy Director General (Policy Planning) at the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) here on Tuesday.
He said even though the BIS has a standard for compostable plastic (which is mainly plant-derived), but that cannot be used for packaging drinking water. The experts suggested that the bureau should come out with a new standard for compostable plastic suitable for packing liquids such as water.
Among other recommendations was that plastic layer used in paper-based packaging materials should be made of compostable plastic and so should be the case with multi-layer plastic.
Ram Vilas Paswan, Minister for Food, Public Distribution and Consumer Affairs, during a press conference here, said that many States have already come out with orders that either prohibit or restrict the use of single-use plastics. In his latest Mann ki Baath programme last month, Prime Minister Narendra Modi urged people to shun the use of single-use plastics and reduce its application to the minimum possible by October 2, the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi.
However, Paswan also said that banning the use of single use plastics all at once is not a solution as other options available are expensive. The alternatives being proposed should meet at least three significant conditions: they should be affordable for people, good enough to win the trust of users as well as adequate transparent so that the consumers can see the content, he said.
While most departments and public sector units under the ministry have already stopped using single-use plastics, the Food Corporation of India (FCI), under the Department of Food and Public Distribution, is exploring ways to replace plastic bags used for storing food grains with those made of jute. “Already 85 per cent of bags FCI uses are made of jute, and only 15 per cent is plastic bags. We want to stop even that,” Paswan said adding that he was convening a meeting of FCI officials next week to prepare a timeline for this.
According to Paswan, India currently generates 95 lakh tonnes of plastic waster annually, of which 38 lakh tonnes are of single-use plastic. Every year, 6 lakh tonnes of plastic waste from India land up in oceans. If measures are not taken immediately, the amount of plastic waste generated will double by 2022, the minister said.
FSSAI issues notice to 75 educational institutions in Coimbatore for unhygienic environment, poor sanitation
Around 61 educational institutions and 14 institutions were issued notices under section 55 (the penalty for failure to comply with the directions of Food Safety Officer)
The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) have issued notices to 75 educational institutions in Coimbatore since last week for maintaining poor sanitation and unhygienic environment. The notices issued to the violators specify a time-bound of 14 days to rectify the issues. It was during the recent special drive the food safety officials found the hostels, mess, and canteens in both schools and colleges to be not following the rules. Some of the complaints raised by the officials during the drive were poor sanitation, poor hygiene, lack of personal hygiene and not displaying the food safety license to the public.
Out of the total 75 institutions that were issued notices, about 46 were colleges and the remaining were schools. Comparing to government institutions, the number of private educational institutions violating the food safety regulations were higher. Designated food safety officer K Tamil Selvan said, "During the drive, we found many failing to comply with the rules. There were some to be having their license expired but still operating without any problem. The violators were issued notices to rectify the issues."
Around 61 educational institutions and 14 institutions were issued notices under section 55 (the penalty for failure to comply with the directions of Food Safety Officer) and section 63 (Punishment for carrying out a business without a licence) respectively of the Food Safety and Standards Act 2006. The department is planning to intensify the drive in the upcoming days.
President of Association of Self Financing Arts, Science and Management Colleges of Tamil Nadu Ajeet Kumar Lal Mohan said they have informed all the colleges to have an FSSAI certificate. "The canteens at all colleges were asked to follow basic procedures according to the food safety guidelines. Similarly, the students could make use of the feedback mechanism at all the institutions in case of any suggestions or complaints."
When most students prefer private over government run institutions, the issue puts spotlight on the need to streamline private schools and colleges to serve hygienic food to the students.
'Street vendors need basic training on food safety'
Meghalaya Health & Family Welfare Minister, AL Hek has stressed the need for street vendors in Meghalaya to undergo training on food safety and hygiene.
“It is the right of every customer to have access to safe and hygienic food,” Hek said while addressing a one – day training programme for Street Food Vendors at Sri Aurobindo Institute of Indian Culture, Shillong on Tuesday.
Hek said that the vendors need to provide not only clean utensils and hygienic food, but also a positive attitude and mindset also needs to be incorporated by them in their day to day business.
Stressing on the popularity of street food around the world, Secretary to the Government of Meghalaya, Health & Family Welfare department, Pravin Bakshi said that the quality of food served attracts the customers to buy from the vendors. In this regard, he said that as the State is one of the favourite tourist destinations, it comes as a major boost for the vendors to grow their business and serve the best and hygienic food to the tourists.
During the programme which was organized by the Commissionerate of Food Safety, Meghalaya in collaboration with Nestle India Limited and National Association of Street Vendors of India (NASVI), the Health Minister unveiled the Hygienic Kit and also distributed Certificates and Hygienic Kits to Street Food Vendors.
It may be noted here that ‘Project Serve Safe Food’ was launched in 2016 and contributes to enhancing the livelihoods of street food vendors by providing training on food safety and hygienic awareness. Since its inception, over 14,000 street food vendors have received training across 12 States through this programme. The project focuses on educating the street food vendors by training them on subjects such as health, hygiene, safe food handling, waste disposal and entrepreneurship. These trainings enable the street food vendors to undertake adequate precautions such as usage of disposable gloves, cart and personal hygiene that prevent the spread of food borne diseases.
Expanding ‘Project Serve Safe Food’ across India, Nestle India Limited in collaboration with the Commissionerate of Food Safety, Meghalaya and NASVI launched the initiative in Meghalaya to train 500 street food vendors. Apart from Shillong, the training will also be conducted at Sohra and Tura in September and November.
Sep 16, 2019
Myth versus reality
ASCI ticks off misleading ads featuring celebrities as claims are grossly exaggerated
Ad guru Leo Burnett once said how advertising does not just circulate information, it penetrates the public mind with desires and belief. And at a time when lifestyle choices are aplenty and we seek to govern our lives with the right one, advertisements, especially those helmed by celebrities and their gone-in-60-seconds wisdom, have a profound impact. Artful lying it is, but when it is outright falsehood, there’s a problem. That’s why the Advertising Standard Council of India (ASCI) has decided to verify tall claims made by companies in mass media campaigns and banned 106 of 334 ads for violating consumer rights and interests. Most of these campaigns were by topline brands and found to be selling mistruths concerning crucial sectors like healthcare, home appliances, personal care, housing, food and beverages and education, in short our everyday life and well-being. The ASCI said the commonest reason for pulling out ads was their unsubstantiated and exaggerated claims that exploited the consumers’ lack of knowledge. Besides, some of the products made unverifiable leadership claims, improper use of Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) logo in contravention of the FSSAI advisory and labelled products organic without fact-checks. One ad claimed an endorsement by the Indian Medical Association (IMA) which had supported the technology but never the product. It also came down heavily on celebrity campaigns, considering their mass popularity and impact, suggesting that each brand ambassador should, while endorsing products, at least ensure that all description, claims and comparisons made in the advertisement are genuine. The misleading advertisements include those of Asian Paints, featuring actors Ranbir Kapoor and Deepika Padukone; Fena Superwash Powder peddled by Preity Zinta, cricketers KL Rahul and Ravichandran Ashwin; Eureka Forbes RO hawked by Madhuri Dixit; CricPlay online game by cricketer-turned politician Gautam Gambhir and housing firms ads by actress Vidya Balan.
Earlier, too, products that falsely claim doctoral research or clinically proven results had been pulled out, be it enriching clay shampoos, chemical-free hair colours or pure atta noodles, all of which have a certain ratio of concentrates and ingredients that they claim to have done away with. For example, atta noodles have maida or refined flour, too, and 100 per cent dandruff-free shampoo is never a possibility. Consumer awareness and rights are anyway not scaled up in this country and without questioning, such products are not only misleading and overrated but cheating the consumer of his expectation and right to a good and healthy life. Going by the list, most of the products prey on the consumers’ health insecurities instead of addressing them through scientific corroboration. Of course, there are consumer laws and various codes about advertisement in general to curb malpractices. And though food safety norms have made labelling with details mandatory, the same does not extend to other product categories with equal seriousness. However, the absence of a single statutory, regulatory body further aggravates the problem. But hopefully this will be taken care of by the Consumer Protection Bill 2019, which seeks to penalise deceptive advertisements. Disclaimers should run as tickers on both audio, print and video campaigns. Of course, the core of the advertising industry is based on tempting the consumer, capturing their mindspace and then driving up sales. True, it is hard to expect the creators to be “conscience-oriented,” but given the social cascade of information flow, they have to be self-regulatory, considering they rule cultural sensibilities.
Food safety training for vendors at PGI
As part of its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative, Hindustan Unilever Limited organised Food Safety Training and Certification (FOSTAC) training of food vendors for implementing the Food Safety Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) supported programme on “Eat Right Campus” at the PGI here today.
The PGI is the first medical institute in India to organise FOSTAC training, wherein all food business operators inside the campus were approached for this purpose. Various officers in charge of the following eating outlets, including hospital kitchen, upper/lower cafeteria, hostel messes and private food business operators, on the campus were asked to actively participate in the programme. Fifty of them attended the workshop.
Dr Amarjeet Singh, Department of Community Medicine and School of Public Health, PGIMER, was the coordinator for this venture.
The star attraction of the event was the presence of specialists in the field who attended the event such as JP Kant, faculty from the CIHM, Sector 42, Dr Geeta Mehra, faculty from MCM-DAV, Sector 36, and Dr Pushkar and Dr Ishwarpreet Kaur.
This training also co-hosted the 15th capacity building and training workshop for street food vendors. The trainees received free hygiene kit, which included aprons, gloves, head covers and easy to understand IEC material. They also received free medical check-up by doctors of the community medicine, PGI.
The workshop was attended by more than 130 participants. These included 40 doctors, medical/nursing/food technology/hotel management students, paramedical, 50 staff members of eating outlets inside the PGI campus and 19 street food vendors of Chandigarh.
Sep 14, 2019
Food Safety Department of Assam bans packaged drinking water ‘Bisleri’ in State
Guwahati: The Food Safety Commissioner of the Assam Government had recently issued a notification to ban the packaged drinking mineral water ‘Bisleri‘ in Assam.
The ban has been carried out due to the presence of fluoride in the water which is considered harmful for the health.
The notification further states that according to section 3 (1) of the Food Safety Standards Act 2006, they have found a large amount of fluoride in the water of this brand which is harmful to health.
This notification was released by the Food Department on 12 September.
The report of the Food Department also states that the water of this brand was tested as per Regulation 2.10.8 of Food Safety and Standards in which an excessive amount of fluoride has been found.
It has also been said in the notification that the ban on this water will continue until the company provides pure drinking water.
Meanwhile, the Department has ordered GD Aqua located at Dolma Industrial Area in Bahata, Assam, to ban the water storage, distribution.
Section 3 in The Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006
It is to be noted that “food” means any substance, whether processed, partially processed or unprocessed, which is intended for human consumption and includes primary food, to the extent defined in clause (ZK) genetically modified or engineered food or food containing such ingredients, infant food, packaged drinking water, alcoholic drink, chewing gum, and any substance, including water used into the food during its manufacture, preparation or treatment but does not include any animal feed, live animals unless they are prepared or processed for placing on the market for human consumption, plants prior to harvesting, drugs and medicinal products, cosmetics, narcotic or psychotropic substances: Provided that the Central Government may declare, by notification in the Official Gazette, any other article as food for the purposes of this Act having regards to its use, nature, substance or quality.
Clean Chaats, No Dirty Golgappa Paani Or Rotten Chow-Chows -- Campaign To Give Street Food Spotless Image Adds To Taste
The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India's initiative to train street food handlers on good hygiene, safety and quality has positively impacted some of India's biggest street food hubs in cities like Ahmedabad and Amritsar
AHMEDABAD
Stalls at Kankaria Lake, the nation’s first Clean Street Food Hub
The chole bhatures, stuffed paranthas, pav bhajis, golgappas, chaats are finger-lickin’ good, as are the melt-in-mouth galauti kababs, chicken rolls, biriyanis, chow-chows, and idiyappams...Well, you can have them served by liveried waiters at gourmet restaurant. But that’s not the real McCoy. For many of us, they are not as tasty until sold from sidewalk-hogging dirigible carts, or small brick-and-mortar stalls—a fixture on city streets. That’s street food, a vibrant subculture populating our cities and towns, dishing out an inexpensive delectable fare, often greasy and spicy. Be it Delhi’s Chandni Chowk, Mumbai’s Khau Galli, Calcutta’s Dalhousie or Lucknow’s Hazratganj, every state has food hubs selling local cuisine. The carts add a sense of community, and give a peek at the microcosm of the city’s millions and its storied history. They are a repository of age-old food culture; they attract local foodies as well as tourists. They make good food accessible and inexpensive.
They don’t do any serious damage to wallets, but are sometimes indulgent on sanitation—a reason why authorities see hawkers as an illegal nuisance selling inferior foods sourced and prepared unhygienically. The street food business has grown exponentially. Hardworking city slickers are its main clientele. This flourishing trade has now attracted unskilled vendors, the majority of them illiterate or semi-literate, having no knowledge whatsoever about food safety. Unhealthy cooking practices, unhygienic handling of raw and cooked food, washing dishes in dirty water, and stinking surroundings because of rotting, leftover food are major deterrents.
Still, these are hopeful times; change is stirring on the woks of roadside stalls. The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has initiated a programme to certify select roadside food hubs across the nation as clean and safe after training the hawkers on personal hygiene (like using gloves and aprons, keeping fingernails trimmed, washing hands with soap before handling food every time, wearing a headgear, covering the mouth, avoiding touching the face, head, hair or any body part). “One of the most important aspects of this initiative is to train street food handlers on good hygiene practices and ensure food safety when meals are prepared and served,” says Pawan Agarwal, CEO of the FSSAI.
The guidelines don’t stop at hygiene training for vendors. The FSSAI also audits the food safety status of a hub (clean location, sanitation facilities, availability of potable water, pest control, waste disposal et al) before giving the certificate, which is valid for a year and renewable subsequently. Besides, 80 per cent or more of the vendors must sell local and regional cuisines.
Five such roads in Gujarat, two in Maharashtra and one each in Madhya Pradesh and Punjab have been already certified by the FSSAI as Clean Street Food Hub. Besides, over 30 food streets in over ten states, including Uttar Pradesh, Odisha, Haryana, Kerala, Gujarat, Karnataka and Goa, have been identified for certification.
AMRITSAR
People enjoy a veritable fare at Darbar Sahib.
In Delhi, 14 places have been identified—including Chandni Chowk’s Paranthewali Gali, Zoological Park, Qutub Minar. But the certification process is yet to begin. “It’s a great initiative. I think this will make civic bodies responsible for keeping the area clean. I want this scheme to be started in Delhi as soon as possible,” says a food vendor in Paranthewali Gali. He admits that vendors are not aware of hygiene and food safety and often people complain about that. Another vendor, at the Sector 32 market in Gurgaon, says: “We are training and it is helpful. I never wore hand gloves and aprons before but now I do it. I tell my staff to keep themselves neat and clean, which makes a good impression on visitors.”
More than 10 million visit Kankaria Lake every year; the figure rose significantly after it earned the safety tag.
Under the project, state governments have to provide a list of food streets with an aggregation of at least 50 vendors that can be developed as clean hubs. In Tamil Nadu, a place selected for the certificate is Elliots Beach, Besantnagar, Chennai, where around 50 stalls sell fast food. Their numbers quadruple during annual weeklong Velankanni Church festival in September. Though the Chennai civic agency gives licences and regulates these eateries, inspection is often irregular and cursory. A crackdown happens only when there are reports of suspected food poisoning or photos of unhygienic conditions are splashed on media. With sales peaking during the fest, sanitation becomes the biggest casualty—oil on fry pans reused for the nth time, utensils washed in dirty water, leftovers discarded in the open, attracting flies and birds.
A similar scene unfurls every day in Khau Gali near Ram Mandir in Bhubaneswar. This is the go-to street for breakfast/lunch/dinner, or to simply buy a snack; popular among the hipsters but underrated by the gastronomic cognoscenti because of hygiene issues. Most eateries keep their foods, cooked and uncooked, in the open, exposing them to dust, air pollutants and parasites. Take, for instance, the top-selling panipuri or phuchka. The tangy, masala water is generally dirty. The cloths that the vendors use to wipe their hands are unfailingly shabby. Since they make the panipuris at home, the quality is suspect too. Authorities hope that the FSSAI project would help such hawkers—on Elliots Beach and in Bhubaneswar—get a shot to stay relevant in this takeaway and home delivery age.
MUMBAI
Juhu Chowpatty has always been a popular street food destination.
The food safety regulator has requested corporate houses to support the initiative with funds. Nestle footed the bill for training and auditing at Kankaria Lake food hub in Ahmedabad, the first certified Clean Street Food Hub in the country. Similarly, Nectar Group sponsored the food hub near Darbar Sahib, Amritsar. Companies like Hindustan Unilever and Jubilant FoodWorks have come forward too. According to reports, more than 10 million people visit Kankaria Lake every year and experts believe footfalls rose significantly since it earned the safety tag.
INDORE
Chappan Dukan is a certified street food hub now.
Paramvir Singh Deol, head of operations, the Food Safety Awareness and Training Organisation (FASTO), which trained vendors at Kankaria Lake and Darbar Sahib, says: “I was excited to see vendors showing interest. The training involves half-a-day of classroom activities and two days of on-the-job exercise.” The cost of the entire exercise is Rs 3 lakh for each hub—the minimum—and it can go up to Rs 10 lakh. Deol says the success of the project depends on the promptness of the state government, especially the food safety department and the municipal agency. “If I train the vendors, but garbage collection or cleaning of the area by municipal workers is not regular, the project will fail. So, it’s a collective responsibility.”
60 kg adulterated sweet items seized from stalls at Chhapar Mela
Ludhiana: To combat supply of adulterated food items across the districts, the food safety team of the health department carried out an extensive checking drive at Chhapar Mela on Friday.
The team recovered 60 kg of sweet items made with artificial colours and flavours which is harmful for children as well as women.
During an inspection of various food stalls installed at Chhapar Mela, the food safety team took samples of several milk products over suspicion of being adulterated with harmful chemicals.
Moreover, a team of the drug department and legal metrology also conducted surprise checking at several outlets for selling tobacco products openly in the city markets. They were also issued challans.
The health department generated Rs 5,000 from several offenders during the tobacco awareness drive. They also gave strict instructions to the offenders regarding the same.
District food safety officer, Yogesh Goyal, said under the supervision of the district health officer, Andesh Kang, a team of the food safety officers carried out inspection at different food stalls at the Chhapar Mela.
They found several adulterated food items containing harmful coloured flavour.
“We have destroyed more than half a quintal of sweets on the spot at the Chhapar Mela. We have collected samples of various milk products and sent it to a laboratory for further testing,” he said.
The food safety team inspected as many as five to six dairy shops in Payal and Dhaka areas of the district on Friday and took samples of 7 to 10 food items, including curd, ghee and other milk products for laboratory testing.
“The district health department team will take action after the report and impose heavy fine on the offenders,” he said.
“We have issued a proper guidelines to all the city-based vendors that they should avoid using newspaper for wrapping the food items. We have also issued instructions to vendors to use masks, gloves, gown and caps while preparing and serving food items,” said Goyal.
The health department advised people to check the quality of food items before buying due to change in the weather conditions.
Fortified rice to curb malnutrition: 5 states yet to give consent to Centre’s scheme
Under the scheme, states will distribute fortified rice under PDS. The rice will be fortified in the milling stage and kernels with iron, vitamin D12 and folic acid, mixed with it in a 1:100 ratio.
The scheme, supposed to be a centrally-sponsored one, was to be implemented through the PDS system by the states. While the Centre agreed to a 75:25 ratio of financial responsibility, and 90:10 in the case of Northeastern states, ministry officials said that states spoke of many roadblocks. (AP)
Six months after the Centre approved a pilot to distribute fortified rice to curb malnutrition in 15 districts, a third of the 15 states that had initially agreed to implement are is yet to convey their consent, according to officials aware of the developments. Some of these states have now set certain preconditions that will delay the project’s implementation, the officials added.
The pilot, a part of the women and child development ministry’s flagship Poshan Abhiyaan programme, was approved in February. Under the scheme, states will distribute fortified rice under the Public Distribution Scheme (PDS). The rice will be fortified in the milling stage and kernels with iron, vitamin D12 and folic acid, mixed with it in a 1:100 ratio.
Of 15 states which had initially agreed to implement the scheme, five are yet to give their consent. States which are on board currently include Assam, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha and Telangana.
The matter also come up in the meeting of the Executive Committee of the Poshan Abhiyaan in July. As per minutes of the meeting, accessed by HT, a representative of the food and public distribution department said that only 9 states had conveyed their consent, with some putting forth preconditions which “will delay implementation of the pilot project”. Since then, Telangana has come on board. An updated report on the implementation of the pilot is due.
The scheme, supposed to be a centrally-sponsored one, was to be implemented through the PDS system by the states. While the Centre agreed to a 75:25 ratio of financial responsibility, and 90:10 in the case of Northeastern states, ministry officials said that states spoke of many roadblocks.
Procurement of the kernels was one of the key problems cited by the states. “States are wary of capital expenditure, too. The blender used to mix kernels with rice costs anywhere between Rs 15-20 lakh,” said a ministry official.
In response to a demand from the consumer affairs ministry, the ministry had agreed to shell out an additional cost of 60 paise per kg for the blending of the fortified rice. This extra cost was to be met from the funds provided by the ministry under the Supplementary Nutrition Programme.
“We are very much on board and have signed up for providing technical support for rice fortification to the states under the PDS. However, our role comes much later; there are many processes to be accomplished before we step in,” said Pawan Aggarwal, CEO, Food Safety Standards Authority of India.
FSSAI strives to prevent surplus food waste
The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has steered a second round of meeting with 20 surplus food distribution agencies from various parts of the country to discuss the steps taken by government to ensure safe distribution of surplus food.
FSSAI has started an initiative called ‘Save Food Share Food Share Joy’ to create a food recovery ecosystem
FSSAI has gazette notified Food Safety and Standards (Recovery of Surplus Food) Regulations, 2018 on 4 August 2019 to establish a uniform national regulation to protect organisations and individuals when they donate food in good faith. “This regulation will further encourage big food businesses to come forward and donate food to these surplus food distribution agencies. These regulations will be enforced with effect from 1st July 2020,” said a FSSAI official.
The meeting was targeted to apprise the surplus food agencies about their roles and responsibilities in ensuring safe food collection and distribution as well as prevention of food waste. “They were also trained on hygiene practices during food collection and distribution under Food Safety Training and Certification (FoSTaC). It will be mandatory for surplus food distribution agencies to register with FSSAI on food licensing portal. FSSAI provided on the spot registration to the agencies attending. At present, 20 such agencies have been registered on FSSAI licensing portal,” the official added.
The first meeting on the same topic was organised on 30 July 2019. The meet was attended by 13 Surplus Food Distribution Agencies.
FSSAI has started an initiative called ‘Save Food Share Food Share Joy’ to create a food recovery ecosystem. This initiative aims to bridge the gap between food companies, surplus food distribution agencies and beneficiaries.
It has also created Indian Food Sharing Alliance (IFSA) - A network of food collection/recovery agencies in India, to create a pan India network of these agencies. The network serves as a common platform where all the agencies will be equally benefitted with regulatory support, food safety training and capacity building efforts.
At the meet, Pawan Agarwal, CEO, FSSAI, announced free FSSAI registrations for the participating agencies. The forum also provided an opportunity to the surplus food distribution organisations to share their concerns and suggestions to help the network grow.
Representatives from Elan Professional Appliances attended the meeting to present their ideas for ensuring solutions to ensure safe food handling during food recovery and distribution. They have committed to extend CSR support to select agencies in developing their systems for safe food handling.
Integrated efforts from government, food businesses and surplus food distribution organisations are necessary to create an ecosystem for prevention of surplus food waste and the initiative is a beginning in this direction.
Keeping an eye on Dasara food mela in Mysuru
This year, the Dasara Food Mela will be held at the Bharat Scouts and Guides Grounds and at the MUDA plot at Siddharatha Nagar in Mysuru.
Food safety officers attached to the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) will keep an eye on the quality of food provided at the Dasara Food Mela, a popular attraction of the festivities that draws a large number of foodies and tourists.
This year, the food mela at two venues — the Bharat Scouts and Guides Grounds and the MUDA plot at Siddharatha Nagar — will not be restricted to the period of Dasara celebrations and will continue beyond in order to cater to tourists who continue to flock to the city post-Dasara.
With the understaffed FSSAI office in Mysuru having the task of looking after the protocol duties, with frequent visits of VVIPs to the city during the festivities, the responsibilities will double for the department, which has just five officers.
Therefore, the FSSAI office has written to the State health authorities in Bengaluru seeking deputation of food safety officers from neighbouring districts to Mysuru to support the local staff. The office is awaiting a reply.
Before the food mela begins, the stall owners will be briefed on the food safety guidelines and their responsibilities in ensuring the safety of foods.
Chidambar, designated officer, FSSAI office, Mysuru, told The Hindu that all stall owners would be first registered under the FSSAI Act before they get into action since it is mandatory for a government-sponsored programme. If they flout the norms, they will either be penalised along with a warning or their stall licence will be revoked. He added that two stalls lost their licence last year for flouting safety rules.
“Our officers will keep a watch on the foods cooked. If necessary, the raw materials used such as cooking oils can be sent for lab analysis. Last year, we slapped fines for using artificial colouring agents,” he said.
Dr. Chidambar said two officers at the scouts grounds and two others at Siddhartha Nagar have been planned for supervision during the mela. “As the mela attracts large crowds, we may need more officers for keeping track of the situation, as we did during Kumbh Mela in T. Narsipur. Therefore, we have requested the Health Department to depute officers to Mysuru until the festivities conclude,” he said. He added that four or five officers would be required to handle Dasara duties in the city.
Sep 13, 2019
MDH 'sambhar masala' recalled in US on salmonella contamination
The contaminated lot of MDH's sambhar powder was distributed in some northern Californian stores, the drug regulator said in a statement late on Wednesday.
MDH, ubiquitous in Indian kitchens, is known for selling various spice mixes that are key to Indian cooking. The family-run company did not immediately respond to phone calls and emails seeking more details.
"The recall was initiated after it was discovered by the FDA that the salmonella contaminated products were distributed," the statement said. It was not immediately clear if the recall was voluntary, or what the source of the contamination was.
No illnesses had yet been reported in connection with this problem, the regulator said.
The salmonella bacteria can cause serious and severe infections, especially in children or elderly people and others with weak immune system. Illnesses usually last 4 to 7 days and most people recover without treatment, according to the FDA.
The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India did not immediately respond to a query about possible local checks.
FSSAI ropes in Virat Kohli to eliminate the usage of single-use plastic
NEW DELHI: Aligned with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s call for action to eliminate single-use plastic in coming years, develop environmental friendly substitutes and also an efficient plastic collection and disposal system in the food and beverages (F&B) sector, the apex food regulatory authority Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) is developing a concrete action plan in partnership with stakeholders.
Apart from developing this incremental and agile plan, FSSAI has recently initiated some regulatory measures to enable F&B industry to reduce its plastic footprint. These include:
* Hotels can use paper-sealed glass bottles for captive use without BIS certification in place of plastic bottles. An order has been recently issued on this.
* Use of bamboo as an alternative to plastics such as straws, plates, bowls, cutlery etc.
* Removing the restriction on use of returnable bottles for packaging of artificially sweetened beverages.
* Permitting the use of liquid nitrogen dosing in PET bottles during the packaging of drinking water.
The food authority has started a consumer awareness campaign “Eat Right India for Sustainable Living” as a call to action for plastic waste management and reduction of plastic footprint in the F&B industry.
To kick-start the movement, the Indian Cricket Captain, Shri Virat Kohli had reached out to millions of fans through his social media accounts (Twitter, Instagram and Facebook) and invited them to a collection drive organised on Thursday. He asked them to bring empty F&B plastic packaging, plastic bottles, aluminium cans and tetra pack cartons for recycling in a move towards sustainable living. Thousands of people joined hands during the activation at MGF mall, Gurgaon where Shri Kohli himself segregated F&B plastic packaging waste and motivated people to follow his foot-steps.
This campaign comes a day after, the Prime Minister launched ‘Swachhata Hi Seva (SHS) 2019’, which has a special focus on ‘plastic waste awareness and management.'
FSSAI is further asking state/UT food safety departments to conduct similar awareness and collection drives at public places and malls at their State capitals and major cities in accordance with the timelines of SHS 2019. It has also urged the State Level Advisory Committees to organise state level discussions around the same and devise activities for sustaining the agenda.
At the event, Virat Kohli, captain of Indian cricket team urged his fans to not just talk about the problem but to also start acting on it. He said, “Don’t get inspired by (my) hairstyle or clothes, get inspired to do good for the society. Join hands to achieve a plastic waste free India by participating in this campaign.”
Speaking on the occasion, FSSAI CEO, Pawan Agarwal said, “Shri Virat Kohli is not only India’s ace cricketer but a wonderful human being with a sensitive heart, who cares for the society. He thanked him for his support to the cause of ‘healthy India’ through safe food, healthy and sustainable diets. He hoped that endorsement of celebrities like Virat Kohli will help to make India completely free of plastic soon and FSSAI is committed to work with various stakeholders from the food and beverages sector to bring about this change.”
Food safety staff plan to turn used oil into biodiesel
Food safety officials from Dindigul district have initiated the process of identifying food business operators who use more than 50 litres of edible oil a day, in order to collect waste oil for safe disposal. The intention is to make sure that used oil does not enter the system in any manner as it can cause greater health problems, say officials.
The collected oil will be covered into biodiesel, which can be used to operate machines and motor vehicles. According to the officials, food business operators who use more than 50 litres have to maintain a separate record to show daily usage and waste oil generated. Hotels, restaurants, snack factories and bakeries will come under the radar, designated officer for food safety, Dindigul district, Dr K Natarajan said. While some sell the used oil to roadside eateries, others flush the waste oil into drainage and water bodies, which can create environmental issues, he said.
“We have communicated to all food business operators that oil should not be used multiple times. The process of identifying those who use oil in bulk quantity is under way. Once the process is over it will be made sure that waste oil goes straight to public sector undertaking oil companies, which will convert it into biodiesel,” Dr K Natarajan said.
According to the notification of food safety and standards (licensing and registration) first amendment regulation, total polar compounds should not exceed 25% in cooking oil as they can cause serious health problems if consumed over a long time. TPC is a widely accepted parameter to check the quality of oil.
PCI urges media to be careful in reporting on food safety
New Delhi, Sep 12 The Press Council of India (PCI) has urged media houses to verify all facts before publishing any news related to food safety after the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India expressed concern over several false and factually incorrect news pertaining to the issue.
The PCI has taken note of the concern expressed by the FSSAI regarding several false and factually incorrect news pertaining to food safety which are being published in the press, a statement issued by the media watchdog said.
Such news creates fear among the people at large and erodes their confidence in the food control systems of the country, the statement said.
Dissemination of any unverified or false information creates panic among consumers, public at large, international media and investors etc, the PCI said.
"All the media houses are hereby advised to verify all facts before publishing any news related to food safety," it said.
Registration of shops to be made compulsory: Hek
SHILLONG: Health and Family Welfare Minister A L Hek said the registration of all shops would be made compulsory in view of health issues.
He was replying to the Call Attention Motion of Congress MLA Mayralborn Syiem in Meghalaya Legislative Assembly on Thursday.
Admitting to the shortage in manpower, Hek said the Food and Safety Department was being run with skeletal staff and would rectify the problem not only in Shillong but in other places of the state as well.
Hek said that a complaint was received from Lansius Syienmlieh, Quinine, Ri-Bhoi District with the sample of a Jalebi on July 1, 2019. The Food Safety officer was instructed to visit the restaurant of Shiv Prakash Joshi (owner of M/S Amit Restaurant, Nongpoh).
He said that the Food Safety Officer inspected the premises and sent the sample jalebi brought by the complainant to the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) Center in North Eastern Region, Umiam for confirmation of the presence of insect.
During inspection of the premises of M/S Amit Restaurant, Nongpoh by the Food Safety Officer, many anomalies were detected which may be the reason for which such incident might have happened.
On receipt of the inspection report from the Food Safety officer and confirmation of the presence of body parts of insect embedded in the Jalebi, the Designated Officer, Ri-Bhoi district issued Improvement Notice under Section 32 of the Food Safety & Standards Act, 2006 including the measures to be taken by Shiv Prasad Joshi within given time.
The designated officer directed the immediate closure of the shop for 14 days with effect from July 4, 2019.
The owner of the restaurant appealed for extension of the days for compliance by another 60 days more to renovate whole of kitchen, store- room and eating area.
In case the owner of the restaurant does not comply within the given time a case under section 59 (i) of the Food Safety & Standards Act, 2006 will be filed for non-compliance. The 60 days’ time extended ends on September 23, 2019.
Speaking at the Call Attention Motion, Congress MLA Mayralborn Syiem said there should be regular checking of restaurants/dhabas and those eateries that do not fulfill the food safety norms should be cancelled.
He said that the manpower of the Food and Safety Department should be strengthened and said there was only one Food and Safety Officer in Ri-Bhoi and there is no other staff. He also said that there should be field staff to monitor day- -to-day activities.
How SaaS technology is ensuring food safety and security in IndiaSaaS models made the enterprise-class software accessible to the smallest players in the agriculture ecosystem
“Food security exists when all people, at all times, have physical, social and economic access to sufficient safe and nutritious food” is how the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) of the United Nations defines food security. In the case of India, while we have seen impressive economic growth in recent years, there is still a struggle with widespread poverty and hunger. India’s poor population amounts to more than 300 million people, with almost 30 percent of India’s rural population living in poverty. But there’s good news too: poverty in India has declined from 37.2 percent in 2004-05 to 28.9% in 2009-10. The time has come for the use of digital technologies to improve the food security situation in India. These digital technologies provide data-driven decision-making support to precision farming and climate-smart agriculture, as well as for supply chain management and traceability. Broadly, these technologies fall under the SaaS (software as a service) model that is already in use and is witnessing widespread implementation in several parts of India. But first, a peek into what SaaS is all about.
What is SaaS?
Traditionally, enterprise software such as Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), Supply Chain Management (SCM) and Customer Relationship Management (CRM) was licensed to customers and these software applications were internally hosted and managed by the customers themselves by having a large internal Information Technology teams. These models were prohibitively expensive for smaller organizations for two reasons; initial acquisition of software and the need to maintain and support the software with large internal IT teams.
As the high-speed internet has evolved and became ubiquitous and affordable, there was no need for software to be installed within the walls of the customers and supported by internal teams. The software vendors are hosting the applications in their own data centers and providing it as a service to their customers based on the usage or subscription, which has come to be known as SoftwareAsAService or SaaS models in the industry which has drastically reduced the overall cost of using the software and hence making it accessible for smaller organizations.
SaaS models have come as a boon in digitizing the agriculture value chain. Agriculture value chains are very fragmented and there are no big margins to invest in technologies. However, SaaS models made the enterprise-class software accessible to the smallest players in the agriculture ecosystem.
How SaaS enables food security?
Food security ultimately boils down to the availability of food, access to food and climate-smart farming. For all of these, SaaS-based solutions come handy. Food security can be improved by design. Some of the methods include the prevention of wastage of resources during the crop cycle – resources such as water, fertilizer, and pesticide so that the environment that supports food production is not depleted. At the core of SaaS technology is the use of data-driven decision making. This helps in precison farming, supply chain management, climate-smart agriculture, and warehouse management, all of which help increase food security by curtailing losses during production and post-harvest stages.
SaaS-enabled smart farming is a precise and resource-efficient method, so it has real potential to deliver higher productivity and sustainability in agricultural production. This is achieved through a combination of satellite data and ground truth data processed through advanced AI/Machine Learning Algorithms which can provide precise actionable advice to help farmers make informed decisions. For example, the use of soil moisture sensors helps farmers make decisions on how, where and when to irrigate thus reducing the costs. Trends indicate that the continued implementation of smart farming in agriculture will help mitigate some of the food security problems that many parts of the world are experiencing. Precision in the use of pesticides and fertilisers can help reduce leaching problems and release of harmful greenhouse gases to the environment. Overall, smart farming encourages the use of technology in site-specific weather forecasts, probability mapping of diseases and disasters, and yield projections. Smart farming comes with all of these opportunities, and the added benefit of reducing the ecological footprint.
The connection between food security and food safety
Food security is closely related to the concept of food safety, both of which have a profound impact on the quality of human life. For that matter, there is no food security without food safety. Food safety has to do with the quality of food, not the quantity. If a person cannot eat the food they have, there is no food security.
Food Safety Issues in India
Some of the challenges with regard to food safety in India include compromised quality, increasing adulteration cases and instances of product integrity issues. Such issues can cause irreplaceable damage not just to individual health, but also to the reputation of brands that manufacture and market these products. With the advent of social media, companies have become prone to scrutiny from both government and consumers. One key element of keeping product integrity intact is to have a full view of the product and throughout the various processes. Digitisation is helping manufacturers manage their risks more effectively with a range of tools aimed at communications between employees and support teams, and improving access to data and analytics. This is another SaaS-based application that supports food safety. This means that if food safety issues arise, they can be resolved quickly and effectively without impacting production performance.
How SaaS enables food safety through traceability
Meeting food safety challenges brought about in the new global context requires a “whole value chain” approach that identifies and addresses risks right from production through consumption. This solution is called traceability. Traceability is getting increasing attention because, in all the unforeseen food safety lapses, the response action needs to be immediate. When we understand food safety beyond recalls, the important thing is to keep track of the origin of products, ingredients and their attributes, from the farm through food processing to retail, foodservice and consumers. The food safety chain is more complicated in our globalised world because it can span international borders and encounter domestic and global regulations. Without technology, managing this complex network is next to impossible. SaaS technology enables the capture of relevant data related to the food supply chain from remote and multiple locations, which is stored in a central repository, enabling near real-time and complete visibility so that any anomalies that spotted can be corrected easily, minimizing risk and saving costs.
Sep 12, 2019
Drive against single-use plastic to be intensified: Collector
District Collector A.Shanmuga Sundram issuing pamplets to raise awarness against single-use plastics at Nethaji market in Vellore on Wednesday.
Awareness campaign for vendors held at Nethaji market
The district administration of Vellore would intensify its drive against usage of single-use plastic items such as bags and cups, said Collector A. Shanmuga Sundram
While launching an awareness campaign on the ban on usage of such articles among the traders in Nethaji Flower, Vegetable and Fruit market in Vellore on Wednesday, the Collector announced that violators would be booked and maximum punishment would be meted out to them. He interacted with the fruit and flower vendors in the market, asking them to discourage the use of plastic bags, as they were dangerous to the environment.
He added that though action is being taken on the usage of banned plastic items, they were being smuggled into the State from neighbouring States where there is no ban on manufacturing or trading.
“We have instructed food safety officers and municipal officials to intensify their drive against the usage of plastics and reports of action taken are regularly sought from them ,” Mr. Shanmuga Sundram said.
He distributed cloth bags and pamphlets reading with messages on the ill-effects of using plastic items and urged them to use alternative materials as suggested in the manual. Vellore City Municipal Corporation Commissioner, S. Sivasubramanian,
DRDA Project Director P. Periasamy, Municipal Health Officer T. Manivannan and Sanitary Inspector Sivakumar participated in the campaign.
Throwaway plastics
Officials of Vellore City Municipal Corporation and Food Safety department have intensified the drive against 14 throwaway plastic items banned by the state government.
“Officials have been visiting shops and seizing banned plastic on a regular basis. The election work came in the way. But it was once again started vigorously. We are regularly sending reports on the plastic seizure,” said an official.
The ‘Swachhata Hi Seva’ campaign launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi aims at accelerating the momentum of Swachh Bharat in the run-up to its 4th anniversary.
It also aims at laying down the foundation of sustainability, reinforcing the concept of “sanitation as everyone’s business”, and commencing Mahatma Gandhi’s 150th birth year celebrations with a nationwide campaign.
Kids at govt schools to enjoy nutritious milk from today
The nutritious powder will be mixed with milk given to kids twice a week under the Ksheera Bhagya scheme.
Over 42,000 children from government and aided schools will get to savour a flavoured and multivitamin ‘health drink’ from Thursday onwards, thanks
to two private trust introducing it.
Adamya Chetana Trust, in association with Sri Satya Sai Annapoorna Trust, based in Muddenahalli in Chikkaballapura district, is introducing a ‘Sai sure multivitamin micronutrition powder’, which will be mixed with the milk provided to the kids twice a week under Ksheera Bhagya scheme.
The scheme has already been introduced in few districts, including Chikkaballapura, Ramanagara, Mandya, Kalaburugi, Tumakuru and Bengaluru Rural.
In Bengaluru, the Minister for Primary and Secondary Education S Suresh Kumar will launch the scheme on Thursday.
“Following the positive result of the powder on children’s health, we submitted the post-health analysis report to the state department of primary and secondary education, which decided to extend the scheme further,” said Anand Kumar, general secretary of Sri Satya Sai Annapoorna Trust.
Choco, almond flavours
The scheme was first introduced in Chikkaballapura district on a pilot basis. After a year, the haemoglobin level in the kids saw an improvement. Encouraged by the development, the trust sought the education department’s permission to extend the scheme to other districts.
The powder comes in chocolate and almond flavours.
“It is just a powder, unlike any other health drink mix the kids consume at home. Here our partners will mix the powder with hot milk and supply it to schools directly,” said Kumar.
This nutritious powder has got the clearance from the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI). A group of 20 nutritionists and paediatricians also recommended some improvement to the powder. “Based on the suggestions, we prepared a formula,” Kumar added.
Meanwhile, Sri Satya Sai Annapoorna Trust has already implemented the scheme at schools in some parts of Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.
FSSAI allows hotels to replace plastic drinking water bottles with glass bottles
The experts dealing with plastic-related issues in FSSAI examined the feasibility of the move, and gave the nod.
The food and consumer affairs ministry has also asked the packaged-water industry to come up with suggestions for alternatives to plastic bottles.
In a move aimed at reducing plastic waste, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), has said hotels can replace plastic bottles with paper-sealed glass bottles for in-house guests as long as water safety standards are met and the bottles are not sold, according to a circular issued by the food regulator.
The circular dated September 9, a copy of which has been seen by HT, was issued following a representation made by the hotels to the FSSAI a few weeks ago seeking permission to serve water in glass bottles to in-house guests.
“The Taj group of hotels approached us asking if they could serve their guests glass bottled water from their own plants instead of packaged plastic drinking water bottles. We accepted the request for consideration and asked our committee that already deals with issues related to plastics to look into it. The committee gave the go-ahead,” said Pawan Agarwal, chief executive officer, FSSAI.
The experts dealing with plastic-related issues in FSSAI examined the feasibility of the move, and gave the nod.
“…At present hotels across the country serve packaged drinking water in plastic bottles. The overall consumption of plastic bottles used in hotels results in considerable plastic wastage. Taking cognisance of this, it has been decided to allow to serve drinking water in paper sealed reusable glass bottles for captive use within the hotel premises…,” the FSSAI circular reads.
Agarwal says, “In the larger interest of the safety of our environment, we have allowed it not just for the Taj group of hotels [but also] other five or four-star hotels also who are willing, and prepared, to start making the transition. It’s just the beginning; gradually the practice would need to be followed by the entire industry including the caterers,” he added.
A Taj spokesperson confirmed they had approached FSSAI.
“The Indian Hotels Company Limited (IHCL) in its endeavour to address the growing plastic menace, pledged on the occasion of Earth Hour 2018 to phase out single-use plastics from all its hotels so as to play a significant role towards protecting the environment…,” the spokesperson said in a statement.
“Sometime early this year we undertook to phasing out single use plastic in our rooms across the group. First phase of which included some of our hotels participating in a plastic elimination challenge — to give up plastic usage through innovative solutions. Many of our hotels have reduced usage of plastic by replacing wrapped dry amities in rooms, such as toothbrush, shaving kit etc. with eco-friendly substitutes.”
According to the circular, the hotels will need to set-up in-house drinking water bottling systems on their premises, and follow the sanitation and hygiene practices; the water served shall conform to BIS specifications for drinking water, and the bottles must not be for sale and served free to guests.
“Our inspectors will keep checking the bottling system to see if the water being served is safe to drink,” said Agarwal.
The food and consumer affairs ministry has also asked the packaged-water industry to come up with suggestions for alternatives to plastic bottles.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi had on Monday reiterated India’s resolve to tackle the problem of plastic waste at the 14th Conference of Parties to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) at Greater Noida.
Chennai’s Murugan Idli Shop: Unhygienic kitchen lands popular restaurant chain in trouble
Officials from the Department of Food Safety and Drugs Administration have temporarily suspended the license of Murugan Idli Shop's central kitchen and issued a notice to the restaurant's Parrys Corner outlet.
Restaurant’s central kitchen had its license suspended on Tuesday for failing to comply with sanitation and hygiene standards.
The Murugan Idli Shop, a popular chain of vegetarian restaurants in Chennai found itself in a soup on Tuesday after the license of the restaurant’s central kitchen in Ambattur Industrial Estate was suspended over lax hygiene and sanitation.
Officials from the Tiruvallur division of the Department of Food Safety and Drugs Administration suspended the license of Murugan Idli’s central kitchen on September 10 after the restaurant had neglected to address several issues which had been raised under the Food Safety Act in the recent past.
“We had visited the kitchen around 40 days ago and raised red flags on the kitchen’s hygiene standards to the manager. We gave him time to rectify the same but he has not complied with the rules. We then issued a show-cause notice to the manager but he has not submitted any reports or taken any action. Based on this, we have suspended operations,” an official from the department’s Tiruvallur division told indianexpress.com.
The official elaborated that certain norms pertaining to hygiene and sanitation, such as periodical medical check-ups of the staff, distribution of caps and gloves to kitchen staff, pest control, white-washing of walls, repairing broken flooring, proper handling of items in storage and maintenance of dish-washer had not been followed at the kitchen.
While the license has been suspended temporarily, the official could not comment on the time period within which the suspension will be revoked.
Likewise, a Murugan Idli Shop outlet at Parry’s Corner was issued a notice by officials from the Chennai division of the Department of Food Safety and Drugs Administration based on a complaint filed by a customer after worms were discovered in the meal.
“We have issued a notice to the restaurant under Section 55 (failure to comply with directions of the food safety officer) of the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006,” said an officer from the Chennai division. “The main issue with the outlet is that pest control is not periodical and hygiene and sanitation is not up to the mark,” he added.
The officer said that if the restaurant failed to address the issue, the department will be forced to take action accordingly.
Customers of the food outlet were surprised upon hearing that the restaurant’s license had been suspended over poor hygiene in the central kitchen.
“Murugan Idli Shop has always been hygienic when compared to most places in the city. I am surprised that they were given such a notice”, Subbalakshmi, a regular at the restaurant said.
“As a consumer I feel slightly apprehensive but in the years that I have been there they have always been great. Not necessarily the most hygienic place but it is not going to be a dealbreaker – it is Murugan after all. Also depends on which outlet you go to, right? The T Nagar one is quite clean”, said Rahul Aripaka, another longtime customer of the restaurant.
Awareness campaign of safe food, healthy drives held
A one-day special awareness and IEC campaign on “safe food and healthy diets’ was held today at Tamenglong Bazaar.
The campaign was led by designated officer, Food Safety Administration, Tamenglong, Th. Sunilkumar Singh.
During the awareness campaign which was conducted in the midst of public cries of plastic eggs and rice in the district, spot testing of food were also conducted. And during one such visit to a tea hotel at Tamenglong bazaar run by a non-local, it was found that the hotel was under permissible hygienic standards. In regard to this, the Food safety department has issued a show cause notice that the hotel needs to be repaired as per the guidelines of food safety rules.
The Food safety department also conducted spot testing on eggs and fruit juices amongst others; and a huge number of people turned up for the testing. On visiting the women market at Tamenglong, some women were food selling yellow ginger powders without proper cover. The officials from the Food safety department instructed all women to properly cover or pack their wares properly.
Speaking to the media, Th. Sunilkumar Singh said that the awareness campaign will be conducted or reach out to all the sub- divisions of the district. “People of Tamenglong need to be aware that all shops selling consumable items are liable to maintain standards of hygiene and adulteration is an offence,” he added.
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