FSSAI to review caffeine standards in beverages

The Food and Safety Standards Association of India (FSSAI) will review the intake of caffeine and other ingredients in these drinks after conducting a detailed study.

Food safety regulator FSSAI has decided to review caffeine standards in caffeinated and energy drinks and is looking for an agency to study the consumption pattern in the country.

Caffeinated and energy drinks are non-alcoholic beverages containing caffeine, guarana, glucuronolactone, taurine, ginseng, inositol, carnitinea, B-vitamins among others as main ingredients that act as stimulants.

"Consumption of caffeinated and energy drinks in India has shown an upward trend during the past decade. The FSSAI intends to review the caffeine standards after a detailed study on the consumption pattern of these drinks among the young people in the country," a senior FSSAI official told PTI.

The Food and Safety Standards Association of India (FSSAI) will review the intake of caffeine and other ingredients in these drinks after conducting a detailed study, the official said.

The FSSAI has invited expressions of interest (EoI) for appointment of a suitable agency to conduct the study on the consumption pattern of caffeinated and energy drinks in India, he said.

The EoIs need to be submitted along with technical and financial bids by July 30. The bids will be valid for three months from the date of submission.

The successful bidder, to be selected by August 25, is required to complete the proposed study and submit the report by November 30, this year, the official added.

As per the draft standards notified by FSSAI, caffeinated beverages are classified as water-based non-alcoholic flavoured drinks and should contain not less than 145 mg per litre and not more than 320 mg per litre total caffeine from whatever sources it may be derived in the formulation of the product.

The FSSAI lays down science-based standards for food items and regulates their manufacturing, storage, distribution, sale and import to ensure the availability of safe food for human consumption.

A month into Maggi fiasco, instant noodles sales crash 90%

Last month central food safety regulator FSSAI had banned Nestle's Maggi saying it was "unsafe and hazardous" for consumption after finding excessive levels of lead and violation of labelling regulations on taste enhancer monosodium glutamate (MSG). Nestle India had recalled Maggi from the markets.

One month after the ban of Maggi,instant noodles sales in India have crashed by over 90% to just about Rs 30 crore from Rs 350 crore a month earlier, according to industry estimates.

With the key category facing an uncertain future, food processing industry players are worried that this could have an impact on their overall investment plans, while companies are now facing 'increased harassment from safety inspectors', according to a senior official of industry body Assocham.

"In the last one month the instant noodles category has suffered a massive drop in sales to about Rs 30 crore a month.

Before the Maggi ban this category was around Rs 4,200 crore annually, which is about Rs 350 crore per month. There is a fear psychosis among consumers," the official said.

Last month central food safety regulator FSSAI had banned Nestle's Maggi saying it was "unsafe and hazardous" for consumption after finding excessive levels of lead and violation of labelling regulations on taste enhancer monosodium glutamate (MSG).Nestle India had recalled Maggi from the markets.

With FSSAI cracking the whip, HUL withdrew its Knorr Chinese noodles and Indo Nissin Top Ramen noodles which were pending for approval with the food safety regulator.

In the aftermath of Maggi controversy, there has been "increased focus" on packaged food companies, the official said, adding "there is a lot of harassment going at lower level. The industry is very scared of being subjected to more harassment".

Seeking government intervention, the Assocham official said: "There is no standard protocol for testing in different states and manufacturers are not given enough time to take remedial measures."

At least on the issue of MSG, the government should clarify that it was misbranding and not a safety issue.

On the impact of the controversy on the food processing industry, the official said: "If there is a feeling that all food companies are rogue and consumers stay away from packaged food, who is going to invest?"

Currently, investments proposed in food-related projects is about Rs 90,000 crore which can have a multiplier effect, the official said, adding even employment could also be affected to an extent if the uncertainty over noodles category remained.

Around 1,500 workers of Nestle India involved in manufacturing of Maggi have been impacted by the stoppage of production.

Detection of Rs. 30 crore trans-shipment scam in Udhampur only a tip of the ice berg

Constitute special Task Force to probe the malpractices and frauds in CAPD: Harsh, 

Jammu, July 06 (Scoop News)- Alleging large scale irregularities and malpractices in the functioning of CAPD Deptt., Mr. Harsh Dev Singh Chairman JKNPP and Former Minister today urged upon the Food and Supplies Minister to constitute a special Task Force to probe the multi crore scams and frauds being committed in the said deptt. with impunity and without any check whatsoever. He said that the expose of Rs. 30 crore ration trans-shipment scam in Udhampur that was detected by the Deputy Commissioner Udhampur last week is only a tip of the ice berg with similar situation prevailing in all other districts and tehsils all over the state.

He said that a deep rooted nexus existed in the CAPD Deptt. with govt. functionaries, millars and ration dealers looting not less than 80% of the funds and ration meant for BPL / APL families with helmsmen turning a blind eye to the open frauds for vested interests.

Mr. Singh regretted that the state govt. had earlier turned a deaf ear to the report of the Parliamentary panel on Food Supplies which had pointed out several incriminating aspects in its report early this year in distribution of food supplies in J&K and had called for a high level probe. He deplored that the Parliamentary Panel’s recommendations regarding streamling of transport and distribution system, reduction of losses in transit of food supplies and digitization of records were consigned to dust bin by concerned authorities with ulterior motives. The GOI had also advanced Rs. 6.11 crore to the state govt. during the last year for digitization of records which if materialized could have detected the fraudulent ration cards, black marketing and other malpractices which regretfully had not even been initiated, he lamented. Lauding the efforts of District Development Commissioner Udhampur in unearthing the Rs. 30 crore fraud in the heart of Udhampur city, he sought a thorough and in depth enquiry into all aspects of distribution of food supplies including the funds received, ration supplied by GOI, transport charges, mule charges, loading and unloading carges, quality of ration supplied and ground verification of the beneficiaries in all districts and tehsils with strict legal action as well as recovery proceedings against the delinquents.

Mr. Harsh Dev Singh said that the rural and remote areas were the worst affected as there was no timely supply of ration and people were suffering badly because of persistent defaults on the part of Consumer Affairs and Public distribution Deptt. to ensure regular food supplies. He said that the ration dealers in majority of the remote areas were playing truant and committing several frauds in the process of ration distribution. He said that ration was never being given as per prescribed scale in majority of tehsils of Jammu Division in particular and there was large scale mis-appropriation as was repeatedly agitated in the erstwhile Assembly also. He accused the dealers of adulteration and other mal practices thus providing poor quality ration to the bonafide consumers. He said that several fraudulent ration cards and BPL certificates had been prepared by the unscrupulous dealers in connivance with the Deptt. officials. He said that huge funds were being wrongfully withdrawn by the dealers in collusion with Deptt. officials in the name of transportation and carriage charges thus causing huge losses to state exchequer. He said that there were hundreds of villages where regular transport was plying but mule charges, load charges were being drawn by ration dealers in connivance with Deptt. functionaries. He further accused the ration dealers of misappropriation hoarding and undue profiteering with the full knowledge and consent of the Deptt. thereby opening robbing the state exchequer.

Lambasting further the erratic implementation of Food Safety and Standards Act 2006, he regretted that the said Act has remained confined to papers only with hardly any initiative having been taken by the concerned officers to check the unabated adulteration of food items and ration supplied which poses the most menacing threat to the lives of the consumers. He deplored that the Govt.’s attention is drawn towards the Act only when some tragic event happens due to food poisoning, food adulteration, adulteration of milk and milk products, unsafe drinking water or spurious drugs. He deplored that despite adulteration in majority of the food items and several complaints filed in this regard the govt. had failed to punish even a single defaulter.

Urging upon the strict implementation of the Food Safety and Standards Act, Mr. Singh called for constitution of a Food Safety Standards Authority on the central pattern to be headed by a senior officer from civil services as envisaged under the J&K Act also which however has not been done since 2006. 

Pointing towards the political allergy to highly organized and unscrupulous production, trade, distribution and supply chains, Mr. Harsh Dev Singh urged upon the CAPD Minister to launch a full throttle campaign against adulteration with rigorous punishment to the offenders. He said that an effective inspection and testing mechanism in respect of all suspected edibles needs a priority attention so as to restore the faith of the public in the said deptt. which is a challenging task which the Young Minister is expected to take up vigorously.

DINAMALAR NEWS

Food safety scare in India

As the controversy surrounding the allegedly high levels of heavy metal lead in instant noodles rages on in India, this author is reminded of an interesting observation made by an acquaintance. “You know, there is more to this issue than meets the eye. The hype over Swiss multinational’s product, especially, has something to do with the much-publicized black money issue. And this is a subtle way of pressing the Swiss government either with positive or negative intent” declared this ebullient person quite convincingly. Though on the face of it this instinctive observation might seem to be totally implausible, it does provide a food for thought to the average Indians, known for poor hygienic consciousness. 

Nudged by the Narendra Modi government silently, the nodal food approval agency Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) ordered and supervised one of the biggest recalls of packaged food in India last month by way of which 27,420 tons of noodles stock, worth $50 million, was destroyed. Other big multinationals have also withdrawn popular products from the market due to food safety and regulatory issues. If the government is indeed concerned about damages caused to human body from ready-to-make food items, why spare other fast-food products and soft drinks that flourish in the market and are equally harmful? 

Does this single-point agenda of hounding big multinationals selectively and turning it into a media circus serve the larger objective of streamlining public health surveillance and enforcement in India even though fast food, one must admit, is not the epitome of healthy diet? Moreover, is it not a fact that most Indian food stalls and even restaurants do not adhere to prescribed hygiene standards? 

Alarmingly, authorities intentionally overlooks regular use of carcinogenic-carbide in cultivation and ripening of fresh produce and Indian kids, incidentally, have abnormally high levels of lead in blood, coming from paints. As panic gripped the bubbling middle-class families, consisting mostly of working couples who have adapted well to the modern lifestyle technique of surviving on pre-cooked food due to time constraints, several Indian states started testing samples of instant noodles. 

The Modi administration jumped into the anti-instant noodle bandwagon without realizing that questions will be justifiably raised over motives of food safety authorities at the central and provincial levels.

If the brand in question and similar other brands were of acceptable quality to the same food inspectors ever since they were introduced in 1980s and 90s, what really changed on the ground that agitated the authorities now? Is it not a reflection of how packaged food items are given license in India and the dubious role that FSSAI plays in the entire process particularly when the manufacturers’ production procedure remains unaltered? Besides, multinational food companies have strong and credible research and development team, which works round-the-clock on product development in addition to keeping a strict vigil on quality control. As per information revealed by Nestle “around 100 million analysis a year are carried out by 8,000 people, working to assure quality and food safety in Nestle products worldwide.” But then, there are many who believe that neither can the FSSAI be faulted nor its professional integrity questioned because this year alone it has rejected over 200 products so far. And out of the approximately 10,000 cases the FSSAI took up for violation of food safety laws in 2013-14, it managed to get over 3,000 convictions with punishment ranging from recalling of products to fine or jail term. If indeed the Indian food safety regulator acted honestly, why would multinational brands risk their own credibility by indulging in production malpractices? 

Even a child knows that snacking is a huge business opportunity in India and the position vacated by one is swiftly filled in by others working in the same segment. So the big question is who gains from Nestle’s loss or a virtually competitor-free market? Interestingly, Swami Ramdev, a pro-Modi spiritual leader wielding enormous influence in Modi’s India, is making the most of packaged-food market volatility, as his company’s own brand of instant noodle will hit the Indian market anytime soon. “I will provide a healthy alternative to Maggi soon for children. There would not be any harmful stuff for the body or anything that creates addiction,” confirmed Ramdev recently, thus raising the possibility of the Modi government’s involvement in the concerted anti-multinational noodle maker hype created across the country methodically. Was it at Modi’s behest that Ramdev openly asked multinationals to “pack up and leave the country?” 

A very reliable source in the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party confirms that Modi is well aware of Ramdev’s business interest in nutrition, health and wellness sector and has “promised his company all help to thrive and diversify.” So was the hoopla generated over multinational food manufacturers’ questionable adherence to Indian health standards a ploy to tarnish such brands permanently as it is payback time for loyal Modi backers? Since Ramdev has used his tremendous influence among the masses to promote Modi’s ascendancy to power, has there been a quid-pro-quo of any sort? 

Whatever the reasons, the instant noodle controversy has underscored the necessity of framing effective laws on food product endorsement by celebrities and strengthening of inspection procedure by adding legal teeth as more and more Indians are exposed to carcinogenic and heavy metal contents hidden in various food items.

Use your noodle

The governance failures shown up by the Maggi muddle weaken the core of ‘Make in India’ itself

The United Kingdom, Canada, Singapore and Australia are a few of the foreign nations that have found Nestlé’s Maggi safe to eat after India held that its sundry varieties of instant noodles suffered from toxic contamination. So what should we make of this? It is tempting to argue we should go by our own tests, our own testing protocols, and our own interpretation of food safety norms, rather than be influenced by what other countries do or say. But this is a piece of hyper-nationalistic nonsense for more than one reason. To begin with, our food safety regulations are largely borrowed from the West. They are also extremely poorly enforced. Also in Maggi’s case, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), when testing for the contaminant lead, appears to have applied a norm that is totally at variance with international practice. The FSSAI’s ban on the product took place under the glare of a largely hostile media, an atmosphere in which TRPs trumped reason, self-righteous anger prevailed over sober analyses, and ideology replaced science.

The real economic cost of the entire episode, which far exceeds the actual loss suffered by Nestlé or other manufacturers, is the impact on Brand India. Conflicting test reports from different parts of the country, the lack of clarity in the process and protocols followed, the shifting stance on part of the FSSAI, and its continued refusal to answer questions, all combine to cast a shadow over the idea of ‘Make in India’ itself. Because core to that proposition — since what is made here also needs to be sold — is the underlying premise that anything with a ‘Made in India’ stamp is as good as or better than the best available in the market from any other country. Building this perception cannot be left solely to the manufacturers, although they need to do the heavy lifting in terms of delivering consistent quality and reliability. Government — in the larger sense of independent regulatory bodies, safety and quality inspectors and auditors, and the like — plays an equally important role in building the brand equity of a nation-brand. Countries such as Germany or Japan, which have achieved this for their engineering or manufacturing quality, have reaped the benefits. Those which haven’t — and China is a good example of this — perforce have to feed at the bottom of the price pyramid.

Nestlé may be guilty of selling unhealthy instant noodles advertised as a health product to children and mothers. But this issue is unconnected to whether the product contained more lead than permitted or whether it committed a gross impropriety by saying there was ‘No added MSG’ on its packets. What the FSSAI, the various state-level food safety regulators and labs and even the Centre, can certainly be charged with is a lackadaisical approach to food safety, poorly structured standards, poor training and equipping of those responsible for implementation of such standards, and above all, a total lack of transparency in an issue which involves millions of people. Unless systemic fixes are applied — since these problems are not restricted to the food sector alone — the economy will end up paying a high price for this failure of governance.

After Maggi, energy drinks, poultry products under lens

NEW DELHI: July 5, 2015, 

After instant noodles, the country's food safety authority has now turned its focus on energy drinks containing caffeine, which are becoming increasingly popular among youngsters in urban areas, besides meat and poultry products.

A set of new regulations on meat and poultry is likely to come into effect from October 1 to improve the quality of these animal proteins, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) had decided earlier this week.

On energy drinks, the regulator is looking for agencies that would conduct a major survey in 24 cities on the their consumption pattern among youngsters, particularly school and college students as well as young professionals.

More than 4,500 participants within the age group of 15-45 years will also be interviewed to find out if there are any observed behavioural changes, addictive tendencies and withdrawal symptoms.

The survey will also look at incidents of sickness or fatality, besides other disadvantages, due to consumption of these drinks. The FSSAI wants the survey completed by November. 

The cities to be covered are Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Chandigarh, Coimbatore, Dehradun, Gurgaon, Guwahati, Indore, Jaipur, Kota, Kozhikode, Lucknow, Manipal, Noida, Patna, Pune, Vadodara, Visakhapatnam and Shillong.

Meanwhile, meant for the entire country, the most important provision in the meat and poultry order is to ensure that animal and poultry feed don't contain bone, blood and tissues of cows and pigs. Also, slaughterhouses that produces beef and pork will not be allowed to handle poultry.

India currently has 64 licensed slaughterhouses — including four in Karnataka and one in Delhi — that have come under the FSSAI's radar.

Another key aspect of the new regulation would be asking the states to ensure limiting the use of antibiotics in poultry and meat products.

Govt to destroy contaminated energy drinks

Srinagar, July 5:

Government has decided to destroy contaminated energy drinks sold in markets across Jammu and Kashmir despite the ban imposed by Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI).

Assistant Commissioner, Food Safety (Headquarters) J&K, Khurshid Ahmad told Rising Kashmir that Food Safety department has decided to destroy all energy drinks on spot from Monday onwards. 

“We have already issued a circular regarding the contaminated energy drinks directing district food authorities to start market checking across the state and destroy banned energy drinks on spot,” he said.

Ahmad said the companies and their authorized dealers had option of recalling their products from the market if they want “otherwise the department would destroy the banned products”.

In its July 2 edition, Rising Kashmir reported about the unabated sale of energy drinks containing harmful and banned ingredients including “bull urine and semen” across J&K despite FSSAI ban that was imposed in May on their manufacturing, sale, distribution and import of four energy drinks. 

The story had quoted the Assistant Commissioner as saying that food safety department has ordered mass testing of energy drinks across the State to authenticate claims that they contain harmful and controversial ingredients. 

Energy drinks like Monster, Cloud 9, Tzinga and Red Bull have been surrounded by controversies after various studies found that they contain dangerous ingredients like ‘artificially manufactured stimulants’.

These claims were made after researches including the one by US-based ‘Longhorn Cattle Company’ on energy drinks found “in fact they do contain bull sperm”.

Energy drinks have been in controversy also due to high caffeine content, a strong psycho-stimulant, which is marketed as an instant source of energy. (muhassan@risingkashmir.com)

A testing issue with Indian food imports

FSSAI fails in its own stated objective to test every import consignment

The recent ban on Maggi noodles puts a lens on the deficiencies of the food regulator to test products made in India. The problem is compounded for food products from other countries: the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) fails in its own stated objective to test every import consignment.

Import coverage

The stated objective of the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) is to test every import consignment. But in 2013-14, matching FSSAI test data with food imports shows that, at 7,246 tonnes of consignment volume, FSSAI tested only about 0.004% of food products entering India. In comparison, the United States Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) physically examined 1.9% of its food import lines in 2011-12.

Testing

Part of the reason is presence. According to FSSAI, it has a presence in only 16 of the 673 entry points into India; additionally, it works with 68 registered laboratories. In 2013-14, FSSAI examined 53,692 consignments of food products weighing 7,246 tonnes. It rejected 371 consignments, amounting to 0.21% of the quantity sought to be imported.

Sampling

Then, the sample sizes drawn by it are without relation to consignment size. “For example, if 10,000 SKUs (stock-keeping units) are being imported and in another case 1 lakh SKUs are being imported, the number of samples drawn for testing should be different, which is not happening,” says Ashwin Bhadri, chief executive of Equinox Labs, a registered laboratory.

Funding

Despite an apparent need to build testing infrastructure, FSSAI is not using the entire funds available with it. It is now looking to move towards random- and risk-based inspections like the US, which has an automated system that, according to the USFDA’s annual report, “uses data analytics from the entire lifecycle of a product to better identify and target high-risk products”.

Data sources: FSSAI, ministry of commerce; all data for 2013-14.