The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) is responsible for ensuring food safety and preventing food adulteration in India. However, there have been several reports and concerns about the failure of regulatory bodies to effectively check food adulteration, especially in spices and packaged food products.
Issues with FSSAI’s Regulation on Food Adulteration
- Widespread Adulteration in Spices
- Many spice brands, including reputed ones, have been found adulterated with artificial colors, starch, soapstone powder, lead chromate, and even carcinogenic substances.
- Recently, exported Indian spices (MDH, Everest) were flagged for containing ethylene oxide, a harmful pesticide, leading to bans in some countries.
- Despite FSSAI regulations, enforcement at the local level remains weak.
- Inadequate Testing Infrastructure
- India lacks a sufficient number of well-equipped food testing labs.
- The testing process is slow, inefficient, and sometimes influenced by corruption.
- Many small-scale adulterators go unchecked due to limited resources for random testing.
- Corruption and Influence of Big Brands
- There have been allegations that big food brands influence testing agencies and avoid strict scrutiny.
- Local unorganized markets remain largely unmonitored.
- Consumer Awareness & Weak Penalties
- Many consumers are unaware of food adulteration and do not report it.
- Fines and penalties for adulteration are not strict enough to deter large-scale offenders.
What Can Be Done?
✔️ Strict Law Enforcement – More random sample testing, stronger penalties, and transparency in results.
✔️ More Testing Labs – Increase the number of advanced labs for quick and reliable results.
✔️ Public Awareness – Educate consumers to test food at home and report adulteration.
✔️ Stronger Export Standards – Prevent Indian food products from being flagged internationally.
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