Marking

Acid-insoluble ash indicates the presence of sand, dirt and dust in food products. As per Food Safety and Standards (FSS) Regulations, ash insoluble in dilute hydrochloric acid on dry-weight basis should not be more than 0.1 per cent in bread. So, lower is better for consumers. Acid-insoluble ash was found below the prescribed

legal limit in all brands. It was found lowest in English Oven (Multigrain) (0.004 per cent) and highest in English Oven (White) (0.043 per cent).

Potassium Bromate

Potassium bromate, an additive, is a flour ‘improver’ that is added to flour to strengthen the dough, allow it to rise higher, and give the finished bread an appealing white colour. Various studies

Unit price of white bread

In terms of unit price, Britannia is the cheapest brand and Perfect is the costliest. Brand Maximum Retail Price (MRP) (Rs) Net Weight in Grams Unit price of 100 Grams (Rs) Britannia 23 500 4.60 The following information shall be clearly and indelibly marked on the label of each packet: (a) Name of the product (b) Trade name, if any (c) Name and address of manufacturer (d) Batch or code number (e) Net quantity in grams (f) List of ingredients in descending order (g) ‘Use by’ or ‘best before’ date (h) Nutritional information (i) FSSAI license number (j) Logo indicating ‘vegetarian’ or ‘non-vegetarian’ status (k) Storage information (l) Maximum Retail Price (MRP) (m) Customer-care details Perfect Bake (multigrain bread) pack had two stickers on it, one of which was not legible. Nutritional information and customer-care details were not provided – a clear case of legal violation. All other brands provided the required information

on their labels. All brands were in plastic packing.

Unit Price

English Oven 35 700 5.00 Harvest Gold 30 600 5.00 Perfect 18 350 5.14