H-FAST cracks down on illicit adulterated ghee manufacturing and trading in Hyderabad; seizes 36 tonnes of adulterated ghee
Hyderabad, Aug 18 (TNT):  The Hyderabad Food Adulteration Surveillance Team (H-FAST) of the Commissioner’s Task Force, in coordination with the Food Safety Department, conducted a special enforcement drive against illicit ghee manufacturing and trading establishments across the Hyderabad Police Commissionerate and seized about 36 tonnes of adulterated ghee and related materials, police said on Tuesday.
Acting on credible intelligence and information received from the public, joint teams conducted simultaneous inspections at 130 establishments, including 39 ghee manufacturing units and 91 ghee-selling outlets, Hyderabad City Police Commissioner VC Sajjanar said in a press conference here.
During the inspections, the teams allegedly detected large-scale adulteration operations in which substandard ingredients and unauthorised chemical substances were being used to manufacture synthetic ghee, he said the products were allegedly packaged and sold to consumers under labels such as “Pure Desi Ghee”.
The seized material included approximately 25.5 tonnes of adulterated ghee, 8.7 tonnes of cream, 1,200 litres of palm oil, 600 litres of vanaspati, six bottles of artificial ghee flavours of three varieties and 30 kg of starch, he said.
Food Safety officials collected statutory samples from the establishments for laboratory analysis and handed over the seized stocks and materials to the Food Safety Authorities for further legal action.
According to the investigation, some manufacturers were allegedly mixing milk solids with palm oil, vanaspati and artificial ghee flavour to imitate the taste, aroma and appearance of genuine ghee, the Commissioner said.
In another method, skimmed milk powder with zero per cent milk fat was allegedly blended with palm oil, vanaspati, starch and artificial ghee flavour to manufacture products marketed as ghee.
The authorities also detected alleged violations of labelling requirements. The products were reportedly packed in transparent covers and sold under names including “100% Pure Ghee”, “Premium Ghee”, “Farm Fresh Ghee” and “Natural Ghee”, he said.
The packs allegedly did not carry mandatory information such as batch or lot number, FSSAI licence details, Certificate of Analysis, date of manufacture or packing and expiry or use-by date.
The investigation revealed that the level of adulteration ranged from around 10 to 40 per cent.
Depending on the level of adulteration, the products were allegedly diverted for use as deepam or pooja ghee and supplied to restaurants, tiffin centres, sweet manufacturing units and Ayurvedic shops.
The cream used in the manufacturing process was reportedly procured from suppliers in Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, Sajjanar informed.
He said the adulterated ghee was manufactured using cheaper substitute ingredients at low cost and sold as original ghee at higher prices, generating substantial illegal profits.
The products were reportedly distributed across Telangana and neighbouring States and supplied to dairy shops, sweet shops, hotels, star hotels, tiffin centres, bakeries, caterers and Ayurvedic medicine shops, he informed.
The Food Safety Department cautioned that the use of refined palm oil, palm kernel oil and palmolein along with chemical additives, including beta-carotene, acetic acid ester, lactic acid, monoglycerides and ghee flavour, could increase trans-fat levels and pose health risks.
The department said such adulteration could potentially increase the risk of cardiovascular problems, while the use of monoglycerides and diglycerides could lead to digestive issues, liver and kidney strain, skin allergies and long-term metabolic problems.
TNT TS
