Milk to sweets, 1 in 5 samples fail quality test in Haryana

In Haryana, the quality of food continues to reveal unsettling trends. From milk and spices to sweets and cereals, routine checks by the state’s Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) have uncovered widespread non-compliance with safety standards.

With nearly one in five food samples analysed (where a lab report is available) failing the quality test from January to October 2024 alone, the findings paint a troubling picture of what reaches plates of Haryana residents. Take milk for instance. The Haryana FDA analysed 104 milk samples from January to October 2024, of which 48 failed the quality test (over 46 per cent) — 46 were found substandard and two were declared unsafe. Among milk products, including butter, ghee, ice cream and other items, 139 (30 per cent) of the 469 analysed samples failed quality tests. Of the 139 samples, 16 were declared unsafe, 121 substandard and two misbranded.

Intensive checks during festive season

In the 2024 festive season, the FDA focused on sweets, ghee, khoya and paneer. Between Sept 1 and Nov 19, 792 samples were taken. Of 371 lab results, 67 samples failed quality tests with Gurugram alone accounting for 20.

Spices and condiments also came under scrutiny. Of the 104 samples analysed, 14 failed quality tests with nine being declared unsafe, including those from brands like Chakshu, Singla Choice, Rajmohan Masalas, Arihant, MP Mother Queen, Vickey Masala, Hilton, and MSG, according to DK Sharma, Joint Commissioner, Food. Of the 14 samples that failed, two were found substandard and three misbranded. Not to forget sweets and confectionery products. Of the 350 lab results, 37 failed tests, with five being unsafe, 30 substandard and two misbranded.

Cereals, pulses and cereal products didn’t escape the scrutiny either. Of the 222 samples analysed in a lab, 31 (14 per cent) failed the tests with 17 being declared unsafe, 13 substandard and one misbranded. Edible oils, fats and vanaspati also followed a similar trend; nine out of the 85 samples failed tests with eight being substandard and one misbranded.Of the 1,845 lab sample results from January to October, 2024, 341 didn’t conform to standards, which amounts to 18.5 per cent.

“The FDA collects samples across 17 categories each year. In 2024 alone, the FDA has filed 593 civil cases and 34 criminal cases along with a penalty of Rs 1.05 crore being imposed in 362 different cases,” said Sharma.

In 2021, the department took 3,313 samples while 901 turned out unsafe, adulterated or misbranded. It amounts to 27.2 per cent of the samples failing quality tests. The maximum number of samples that failed were from Rohtak (75), Hisar (69), Jhajjar (65), and Jind (64). In 2022, 4,724 samples were taken while 1,522 failed quality tests (32.2 per cent). The maximum number of samples that failed were from Gurugram (130), Hisar (110), Rohtak (100), Sonepat (92) and Bhiwani (92).

In 2023, 2,536 samples were taken across the state. As many as 718 failed the quality tests (28.3 per cent). The maximum number of samples that failed were from Panipat (73), Rewari (70), Jhajjar (70) and Gurugram (62).