Adulterants

Adulteration What is adulteration Adulteration of food commonly defined as “the addition or subtraction of any substance to or from food, so that the natural composition and quality of food substance is affected". Adulteration is either intentional by either removing substances to food or altering the existing natural properties of food knowingly. Unintentional adulteration is usually attributed to ignorance’s, carelessness or lack of facilities for maintaining food quality. Incidental contamination during the period of growth, harvesting, storage, processing, transport and distribution of foods are also considered. “Adulterant” means any material which is or could be employed for making the food unsafe or sub-standard or mis-branded or containing extraneous matter. Food is declared adulterated if: A substance is added which depreciates or injuriously affects it. Cheaper or inferior substances are substituted wholly or in part. Any valuable or necessary constituent has been wholly or in part abstracted. It is an imitation. It is colored or otherwise treated, to improve its appearance or if it contains any added substance injurious to health. For whatever reasons its quality is below the Standard Adulterated food is dangerous because it may be toxic and can affect health and it could deprive nutrients essential for proper growth and development. Common adulterated foods Some of the common adulterated foods are milk and milk products, atta, edible oils, cereals, condiments (whole and ground), pulses, coffee, tea, confectionary, baking powder, non - alcoholic beverages, vinegar, besan and curry powder. Types of adulterants Type Substances Added Intentional Adulterants Sand, marble chips, stones, mud, other filth, talc, chalk powder, water, mineral oil and harmful colour. Incidental adulterants Pesticide residues, droppings of rodents, larvae in foods. Metallic contaminants Arsenic from pesticides, lead from water, effluent from chemical industries, tin from cans. Poisonous or Deleterious Substances Generally, if a food contains a poisonous or deleterious substance that may render it injurious to health, it is adulterated. For example, apple cider contaminated with E.coli O157:H7 and Brie cheese contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes are adulterated. If a food contains a poisonous substance in excess of a tolerance, regulatory limit, or action level, mixing it with "clean" food to reduce the level of contamination is not allowed. The deliberate mixing of adulterated food with good food renders the finished product adulterated