ANOTHER MILK "PROBLEM"-CHINA'S LATEST SAFETY TRAVAILS

It is sad to see a country like China struggling to cope up with food frauds in spite of the brutal state power available with the government to punish the culprits with even capital punishment. How far the corruption at the government level influences the attitude of adulterators is not clear. The incident of Melamine tainting of infant food that killed and maimed many children, which is not easy to erase from memory, has dented the image of this country considerably and any effort to seriously address the systemic failure is not viewed with confidence by the citizens as well as international buyers of Chinese foods. Now comes the news that Milk being produced by one of the leading dairies in that country is contaminated with the deadly Aflatoxin at levels not considered acceptable in many countries, further straining the credibility of food safety administration of there. Here is a gist of the news report which gives further insight into the episode.  

"China has discovered excessive levels of a cancer-causing toxin in milk produced by one of the nation's leading dairy companies, the firm said, in the latest in a series of food safety alarms. The government's quality watchdog found high levels of an aflatoxin, which is caused by mould, in milk produced by the Mengniu Dairy Group, the company said in a statement issued Sunday. Mengniu said the milk, produced at one of its plants in the southwestern province of Sichuan, was tested before being sold so the contaminated milk never reached the market. China is trying to crack down on product safety violations to reassure citizens and restore faith in the government after a series of high-profile scandals. Milk was at the centre of China's biggest food safety scandal in 2008 when the industrial chemical melamine was found to have been illegally added to dairy products to give the appearance of higher protein content. At least six babies died and another 300,000 became ill after drinking milk tainted with melamine. Product safety problems have been found in goods ranging from pharmaceuticals to cooking oil. In September, the government arrested 32 people over the sale of cooking oil made from leftovers taken from gutters. Aflatoxins can be found in milk after cows consume feed contaminated by mould and can increase the risk of cancer, including liver cancer, according to the World Health Organisation. Mengniu said the products had been destroyed, and apologised to consumers".

The explanation that the affected milk supply came from cattle, fed with animal feeds containing high levels of Aflatoxin which is generated due to growth of the mold Aspergillus under unsatisfactory conditions of storage or use of Aflatoxin tainted ingredients like groundnut cake, cannot be an excuse to condone such dangerous episodes. If the production of cattle feed or processing of milk is managed under HACCP regime, such an incidence could not have happened. One can only hope that adequate lessons will be learned from this unfortunate incidence of milk poisoning.  

V.H.POTTY
http://vhpotty.blogspot.com/
http://foodtechupdates.blogspot.com

MELAMINE AND AFLATOXIN IN FOODS-NEW INTERNATIONAL LIMITS

The Chinese Melamine tainting episode seemed to have spurred the Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAD) into taking action to preempt such incidences in future at its recent meeting in Geneva, Switzerland. It is expected that many far reaching decisions approved unanimously will further facilitate smooth international trade in foods from agricultural , live stock and fish. What is puzzling is that Melamine use for adulteration of milk and some pet products was detected only in China and why the world body has to come up with restriction limits for this toxic substance is some what odd. If different adulterants are used to defraud the consumers in different countries, is it the responsibility of Codex Commission to evolve standards for all of them? Probably Indian adulterators can provide hundreds of examples of food adulteration and CAC may have to spend years to evolve limits for all of them after generating the necessary scientific data.

"Melamine is a toxic chemical and because it is a hard synthetic substance with flame retardant properties, is commonly used in making countertops, dry erase boards, and other house wares including utensils. This toxic substance is sometimes illegally added to food products in order to increase their obvious protein content. When mixed with diluted milk it thickens the milk and make it appear rich in protein. More importantly, it would seem that normal testing of the product cannot detect the substance but shows it as protein. If consumed it causes renal and urinary problems in humans and animals when it reacts with the cyanuric acid present in the human body and sometimes in drinking water and animal feed. Due to this harmfeful nature its use in food production is universally banned. India needs no worry as melamine is not produced, consumed or exported from here, said Sanjay Shah, former Chairman of Indian Oilseeds and Produce Export Promotion Council (IOPEPC), a trade body set up by the Ministry of Commerce".

"As far as aflatoxin goes, it seems UN has relaxed the norm, said Shah. Maximum levels of 10 micrograms/kg were set for aflatoxins in Brazil nuts (shelled, ready-to-eat) and 15 micrograms/kg for shelled Brazil nuts (intended for further processing), while the Commission also adopted a code of practice to prevent this contamination. Aflatoxins are carcinogenic fungal toxins that can contaminate corn, peanuts and other food crops such as tree nuts under certain conditions. The new Codex measures provide specific guidance for production, harvesting, packing, processing, storage, distribution, marketing and consumer education to reduce food safety risks associated with these products. Guidance covers such aspects as the control of irrigation waters, cooling and storage and correct washing of hands by consumers".

"The methods used for analysis and sampling are the necessary basis for food inspection and control. The new Guidelines adopted by the Commission will make it possible to run tests to determine if foods are derived from modern biotechnology, to authenticate food varieties such as fish species and to establish the presence of allergens," the WHO said. "The WHO welcomed the agreement on the food safety guidelines as an "important international consensus" in the area of biotechnology where the Commission has already developed a number of guidelines related to food safety assessments for foods derived from modern biotechnology. The Codex Alimentarius Commission sets international food standards to protect the health of consumers and ensure fair practices in the food trade. It is the longest-standing example of inter-agency cooperation in the UN system, and has 182 member-states and one member organization, the 27-nation European Union".

Though the protocols and standards are based on consensus, it does not prevent member countries from importing products not conforming to the CAC parameters. A country like India probably may integrate most of the standards with its own national bench scale marks for ensuring food safety within and avoid trade disputes with other countries.

V.H.POTTY
http://vhpotty.blogspot.com/
http://foodtechupdates.blogspot.com

MELAMINE THEN, TOXIC OIL NOW-CHINESE WOES

In pursuit of quick development into a world power, China seems to have ignored the basic rule that unless the population is happy, contented and healthy, no short gains are sustainable, no matter how glossy the "report card" may look. People around the world are still finding it difficult to erase the troubled memory of children affected by the melamine tainted milk last year and now comes the news that wide scale fraud is rampant in the cooking oil sector, which was found to be distributing oil containing cancerous materials. It is good that there is no attempt yet to cover up the fiasco and truth may emerge regarding the extent of damage afflicted by the laxity in safety monitoring by the concerned government agency.

"The State Food and Drug Administration, China's food safety watchdog, has ordered a nationwide inspection of all cooking oil as reports released by The China Daily indicated that almost one-tenth of Chinese supplies contained cancer-causing agents and were made illegally. According to the Administration's website, "If food service providers are found to be using cooking oil from an unclear source, or if they have bought 'drainage oil,' their operations will be immediately halted and they will be dealt with in accordance with the law."

It defies logic as to how consumers can accept edible oil products containing drainage oil unless there is no other alternative choice before them or such products are much cheaper than standard products. One is reminded of wide spread adulteration of cooking oils in India, the most targeted ones being mustard oil with argemone oil, Coconut oil with palmolein or rubber seed oil and groundnut oil with many cheaper oils. Of course with a farce enforcement regime under the pompous name of Food Standards and Safety Agency of India, it is field day for the "hard working" food adulteration industry in the country.

V.H.POTTY
http://vhpotty.blogspot.com/
http://foodtechupdates.blogspot.com

FOOD SAFETY VIGILANCE-THE CHINESE WAY

Melamine tainted milk continues to haunt Chinese government as more and more dairy plants are being identified indulging in milk adulteration, in spite of the capital punishment meted out to some of the "identified" perpetrators in the first episode. Under more stringent laws put in place recently Chinese government is reported to have canceled more than 6000 licenses of food processors for violation of the food laws. Whether such actions will be a permanent feature or just a temporary measure to deflect the criticism from buyers of Chines foods in the global market remains to be seen.

"Meanwhile, quality inspectors conducted 1.07 million checks on food producers and rectified 140,000 problems, according to the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine (AQSIQ).Wang Yong, director of AQSIQ, told quality inspectors across the country at a year-end working conference that the crackdown on unsafe food products would continue this year as the general situation remains grim"

The huge numbers being mentioned about checks, presumably meaning inspections and problem identification and rectification are really impressive and if true, probably China could become a model for other countries for ensuring safety of foods for its citizens.

V.H.POTTY
http://vhpotty.blogspot.com/
http://foodtechupdates.blogspot.com

THE "MELAMINE" MILK-CHINA'S ACHILLES' HEEL!

The melamine tainted milk episode that killed 6 children last year does not seem to have provided a lesson to the dairy industry in China as reflected by the recent report of closing down a diary for the same crime. The greed for money does not stop some from indulging in murderous activities, in spite of the execution of two culprits earlier and it is a cause for worry and a challenge for the entire humanity as to how such heinous crimes can be prevented for safeguarding the lives of the denizens.

"China has taken significant steps to improve the quality of its food and last week's China has taken significant steps to improve the quality of its food and last week's dairy closure in Shanghai may reflect a strengthened inspection regime. Yet, last week's problem isn't the first involving melamine in milk in recent weeks. A dairy in Shaanxi province was closed after problems were detected in early December. Separately, in recent weeks, at least one official blamed for the scandal, China's former top quality supervisor, Li Changjiang, was appointed to another high-profile government position as head of a nationwide antipornography effort".

The problem is not China's alone because such a thing can happen any where in the world. While stricter laws can be enacted to punish the adulterators the lacuna lies in enforcing them because most of the countries, rich and poor alike lack the necessary personnel and infrastructure to exercise 24X7 surveillance of the market. Now that criminal punishment approach is not working, is there any other alternate option to counteract the scourge of food adulteration? Probably involvement of Sociologists and Psychologists to tackle the menace may be more appropriate.

V.H.POTTY
http://vhpotty.blogspot.com/
http://foodtechupdates.blogspot.com

FOOD "CRIMINALS"-MEETING THEIR NEMESIS

Food adulteration is supposed to be rampant in many developing countries including India and China but reliable statistics are hard to come by, giving a feeling that every thing is fine as long as large number of people do not die due to severe food poisoning. Statistics can also give a false sense of comfort when the fatality from food poisoning is extrapolated on a scale of number of deaths per population of a thousand or a million! Recent reports from Ludhiana and Ahmadabad regarding widespread food adulteration instances in these urban areas, if true, mean that food adulteration must the most profitable and safest "business" in India! Many sociologists believe that present deterrent policy is not strong enough to "kill" the incentive for adulteration and the example of China is often cited.

"China executed a dairy farmer and a milk salesman Tuesday for their roles in the sale of contaminated baby formula — severe punishments that Beijing hopes will assuage public anger, reassure importers and put to rest one of the country's worst food safety crises. The men were the only people put to death in a scheme to boost profits by lacing milk powder with the industrial chemical melamine; another 19 were convicted and received lesser sentences. At least six children died after drinking the adulterated formula, and more than 300,000 were sickened".

Execution for adulteration may be too severe a punishment though in the Chinese incidence melamine adulteration caused some death amongst children. Difficulties in assigning responsibility for adulteration cases do present problems in a society like that in India which is a democracy with a sound but complicated judicial system. Recent pronouncements by FSSAI, the Authority in charge of food safety, declaring complete overhaul of the monitoring and punishment system for culprits give some hope that it will be harsh enough to be deterrent for future food criminals.

V.H.POTTY

http://vhpotty.blogspot.com/
http://foodtechupdates.blogspot.com