Food adulteration touches 8 pc.

(From The Economic Times)

Byline: Prathima Nandakumar

VADODARA: Pesticides in cold drinks and packaged water, wax in cheese, nonedible dyes in sweets, confectioneries and juices, substandard flour and urea in milk, animal fat in vegetarian food - the list of adulterants is long and has not spared even a single food product.

Despite amendments to the Prevention of Food Adulteration Act, 1954, the level of adulteration in food products in Vadodara was found to be 8.16 per cent. About 37 of the 453 food samples collected by the Food & Drugs Laboratory in 2002-2003 were adulterated. If loopholes in law have emboldened erring manufacturers, the lack of consumer awareness has made things worse. "Most consumers are not brand conscious. They are ignorant about PFA standards and pick up cheaper products by compromising on quality and …