Adulteration checks are needed all year round

(From left) Inferior cashew nuts that were seized; substandard cashew nut paste seized from a shop in Borivli; kaju katli that is prepared in unhygienic conditions

Residents of Maharashtra, especially Nagpur, Thane and Pune, need to press the caution button when buying sweets this Diwali. The state Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) has seized a significant amount of adulterated ingredients, including mawa, ghee and dry fruits, from here. Of 24 lakh kg of adulterated ingredients seized since August, Nagpur leads with 22.68 lakh kg followed by Thane, from where officials seized around 72.4 kg of ingredients. Pune ranks third with a seizure of 31 kg of spurious goods.

The FDA says it has started the festive season drive, which will end in December, to curb the use of adulterated food items. The FDA conducts random testing of products or acts on tip-offs to seize these adulterated items. In the ongoing seizure, the department collected 194 samples, inspected 129 samples and seized 8,654 kg of adulterated items from Mumbai.

One is happy to note that there will be enhanced vigilance and surprise checks till the end of the year. While the festive season does see enhanced sweet buying, we must have consistent checks throughout the year to ensure establishments toe the line.

Checking adulteration is vital but the FDA, one is sure, surveys hygiene too. Guidelines must be strictly adhered to. It is not the size of the establishment that matters, it is how clean it is, which goes for both the eating section and the kitchen. Bacteria that cause food poisoning are all around the kitchen. Clean surfaces and utensils, used both in cooking and serving, are one aspect. The cooks and servers need to ensure hygiene too.

The FDA needs to be a watchdog that is feared by these establishments. The organisation must ensure that once hauled up for adulteration or other offences, an outlet must have an overhaul and there should be surveillance to ensure they do not slip back to their old ways. People too, must ensure that they buy branded food and sealed packets.