Loose Edible Oils Adulteration in most samples from 14 states

Ensuring the authenticity of edible oil has been a persistent problem. Wherever there is a commodity that has either high value or high-volume sales, some people may be tempted to profit from illegal activity. Food fraud usually involves misleading the purchaser as to the true nature, substance, or quality of the product; in such cases, food standards and labelling are breached. The offence can be termed as adulteration, which generally involves the dilution of a commodity with less expensive materials. Adulteration has been a problem in the oil and fat industry for a long time. It is sometimes done deliberately and occasionally it is accidental. Generally expensive oil is adulterated with the cheaper one. Consumers are thus not only cheated, they also become vulnerable to diseases. It goes without saying that information and knowledge about the common adulterants and their effects on health will be a primary basis on which the battle against adulteration will have to be won. Information and adequate precautions on the part of the consumer will save them the many repercussions of using adulterated stuff. In a major exercise, Team tested 1,015 samples of loose edible oil on both quality and safety parameters. A series of tests were carried out to check for possible adulteration. While the findings themselves may not come as a shocker—the suspicions were always there, they should be a call to action not only for consumers but also for governments and manufacturers.

A Report