As many as 25 samples from MDH have been lifted by FSSAI from their 11 manufacturing amenities. Image for illustration functions solely. File
| Photo Credit: Reuters
Food regulator FSSAI has not discovered any hint of ethylene oxide in samples of spices of two main manufacturers MDH and Everest that have been examined in 28 accredited laboratories, sources stated.
According to them, studies from six different laboratories are nonetheless pending.
Last month, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) began taking samples of spices in powder kind of all manufacturers, together with MDH and Everest, from throughout the nation in view of high quality considerations flagged by Hong Kong and Singapore.
The Hong Kong’s Center for Food Safety (CFS) had requested customers to not purchase sure spice combine merchandise of MDH and Everest, citing the presence of ethylene oxide past the permissible restrict.
These merchandise are MDH’s Madras Curry Powder, Everest Fish Curry Masala, MDH Sambhar Masala Mixed Masala Powder, and MDH Curry Powder Mixed Masala Powder.
According to sources, a pan India drive was initiated on April 22 by means of all of the commissioners of meals security of states and Union Territories and regional administrators of FSSAI.
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It included in depth inspections of the spice manufacturing models and likewise sampling and testing of merchandise manufactured on the market and distribution for consumption within the home market.
Sources stated the samples of Everest spices have been picked up from their two manufacturing amenities. As many as 25 samples from MDH have been lifted by FSSAI from their 11 manufacturing amenities, they stated.
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Each of the merchandise sampled was analysed for compliance with numerous high quality and security parameters together with pesticide residues. These samples have been additionally analysed for Ethylene Oxide (ETO) at NABL-accredited laboratories notified by FSSAI.
The laboratory studies acquired up to now have been examined by the scientific panel at FSSAI and noticed that the samples confirmed no traces of ethylene oxide, sources stated.
Similarly, check studies of over 300 samples of spices of different manufacturers have been additionally examined by the scientific panel and people additionally conclusively indicated no presence of ethylene oxide, they added.
The scientific panel contains eminent scientists from the Spice Board, CSMCRI (Gujarat), Indian Spice Research Institute (Kerala), NIFTEM (Haryana), BARC (Mumbai), CMPAP (Lucknow), DRDO (Assam), ICAR, National Research Centre on Grapes, (Pune).
The Spice Board has additionally issued tips to the spice exporters for utilizing ETO as a fumigant for sterilising spices to cope with microbial contamination as per the requirements of importing international locations, sources stated.
