Formalin to antibiotics, our food is unsafe

The efficacy of India’s food safety mechanism is under a shadow

The discovery of formalin-laced fish at markets in Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Goa has raised concerns about the efficacy of India’s food safety establishment. The possibility that a chemical used to preserve dead bodies may have made its way into the food chain is frightening. A compound obtained by mixing water with formaldehyde, formalin is applied on fresh catch to enhance its shelf life. Since long-time exposure to the chemical can be carcinogenic and can increase the risk of blood cancer and other lymphomas, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), the national food regulator, has banned the use of formalin in fish preservation.

A related danger is the misuse of antibiotics to boost poultry production which can pose significant risks to health. Antibiotic resistance enters the food chain through animals and crops and then moves on to the water cycle. Two weeks ago, after a number of states banned the import of fish from other states, the FSSAI and the Central Institute of Fisheries Technology (CIFT), Kochi, brought out guidelines to alert food testing laboratories, traders and buyers about the potential dangers of formalin. One of the safety recommendations is to use a rapid detection kit designed by the CIFT to check whether formalin has been used as an additive to the fish. Unfortunately, India does not have effective regulatory provisions for the use of anti-microbials in animals raised for domestic consumption.

Many other countries have taken the lead in this direction. Driven by consumer awareness, Sweden banned the use of antibiotics as growth promoters in the poultry industry as far back as 1986. India, too, adopted a National Action Plan on Anti-Microbial Resistance last year but largely remains on paper. With increasing demand for animal food products, the misuse of antibiotics will keep soaring unless steps are taken to curb this.