Watch what you eat: 4 in 5 food samples fail quality test

Year Food samples Test cleared Cases Convictions

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2012-13 72,200 13,571 (18%) 10,235 3,845 (37%)

2011-12 64,593 8,247 (12%) 6,845 764 (11%)

Aditi Tandon

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, December 10

The health of millions is at stake with unsafe and unhygienic food continuing to flood markets across the country.

Data available with the Ministry of Consumer Affairs shows that almost four out of five food product samples, tested last year under food safety laws, failed the quality test.

Minister for Consumer Affairs Ram Vilas Paswan today said in Parliament that in 2012-13, out of 72,200 food samples tested across the country, barely 13,571 cleared the laboratory test for food safety. This means 81.3 per cent of the samples failed the test.

In 2011-12, 64,593 samples were tested and only 8,247 were found to meet food safety standards. This amounts to adulteration in 87.3 per cent of the samples tested.

Despite the food adulteration scenario being alarming, prosecution of food safety cases remains poor across the country with the government data showing that last year, only 3,845 convictions were secured against 10,235 cases that went for trial under the stringent Food Safety and Standards Association of India (FSSAI) Act.

For 2011-12 also, the convictions were a poor 764 against 6,845 prosecutions that were launched.

Paswan today acknowledged that food safety infrastructure was missing in the majority of states and none of the states had cared to send him details of persons prosecuted for adulteration despite asking. “No state has sent me the information despite repeated requests,” he said in Lok Sabha during Question Hour.

India has 125 crore consumers whose health is secured under the stringent FSSAI law. FSSAI Regulations framed in 2011 provided for stringent penalties for food adulteration prescribing imprisonment of seven years up to life and Rs 10 lakh penalty for causing death; six years jail and Rs 5 lakh for grievous harm caused by unsafe food intake; and one year in jail and Rs 3 lakh fine for non-grievous harm. Even for misbranding, a seller could face six months in jail and Rs 1 lakh fine.

None of these laws are being implemented as is evident from the poor rate of conviction. The FSSAI Act was brought recently to enhance penalties for food adulterators. It replaced the archaic Prevention of Food Adulteration Act 1954.

The law specifies penalties for the following categories of adulterations — sub-standard, mis-branded and unsafe foods. But since health is a state subject, the law has to be enforced federally. Many states, however, are yet to set up food safety offices, Health Ministry sources say.

FSSAI, for its part, functions under the Health Ministry and has 151 food testing labs, not enough for the quantum of food products flooding Indian markets. The issue of food adulteration exercised the mind of the Supreme Court earlier this year when it came down heavily on the Centre and states for milk adulteration. FSSAI report had documented shocking evidence of lack of safety in milk products being sold across states.