Milk adulteration and solutions to combat this menace
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The document discusses the issue of milk adulteration in India. It notes that a survey found 68.4% of milk in India was adulterated, containing substances like urea and detergent which can harm infants. Experts say adulterated milk has led to increased diseases in children. There are also issues with fake and substandard baby formula products due to lack of regulations and enforcement. Proper laws and tracking technologies are needed to curb the problem and protect public health.
Milk adulteration and solutions to combat this menace
- 1. ISSUE 30Cover Story Milk adulteration and solutions to combat this menace Introduction: Does your child falls prey to diarrhea often? Is his growth limited despite giving proper diet and looks mal-nourished? If yes, then you are victim of adulterated fake milk, say doctors.And despite having a population of 1.25 billion there is no law in India to put an endtothismenace. “There are several other side effects of fake baby milk powder or milk, which is given to children as diet every day,” Agarwal said. However, doctors feel that packaged baby powder milk is also sometimes adulterated by the mafias, who are in the business of duplicatingmilk. “What adds to the misery of the parents and consumers is the milk made from urea and detergents, which is very harmful for the bodyofaninfantbaby,”Agarwalsaid. Agarwal also said that the packaged baby milk powder which comes in packaging is less prone to be duplicated as the companies use proper packaging of these products, “but we have seen and heard abouttheduplicityof theseproductstoo.” Doctors feel that due to adulterated or fake baby milk, diseases like stunted brain development, asthma, leukemia, diabetes, deformed reproductive organs, kidney stones, skin rashes have become commoninchildrenthesedays. These are the deadly risks being faced by millions of children in India, because of negligible laws on p o w d e r e d i n f a n t formula. What's even worse is that t h e r e a r e n o g u i d e l i n e s t o check existing d o m e s t i c a n d international brands of baby formula or even fake infant formula which are in circulationinthe Indianmarket. ScaleofProbleminIndia According to a survey conducted by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) in 2011, 68.4 per cent of milk served throughout the country was found adulterated, which itself defines the grim situation and calls for strict rules over fakeandadulteratedmilk. Mohan Singh Ahluwalia, President of Gwala Gaddi, said, “People are losing their faith in milk now. The present condition is very serious as a single person is making a brand of itself and we are against it. Our movement mainly deals with the interests of consumers and we are demanding that puremilkbeservedtopeople.” Ahluwalia further says, “Currently there is no law which deals with the standard of milk as in the government guidelines it is not clear how to achieve standards whether in a natural way or an artificial way. Thus, all the companies and dairies across the country are conducting the black business of impure milk and making huge profits; and the Government of India is a part of this conspiracywithitsmillionsof consumers.” If we look at the pattern of feeding babies in India, then traditionally, mothers here have breastfed their babies. The option of putting them on formula has been exercised only when they were unable to do so. But with changing times, resurgence of women in the mainstream as a major workforce has precipitated the need to resort to formula feeding rather than breastfeeding as the latterisamorephysicallydrainingprocess. However, experts feel that with thechanging lifestyles, young mothers prefer the ease of putting their child on formula. While his is good news for manufacturers, exports and the market, the lax laws, dodgy or negligible guidelines, bring the infants and toddlers at the receivingend. Consequences Incidents of adulterated foods, such as China milk case in 2008 have steadily increased, adding food-borne diseases, and cheap food and beverage imitations as threats to consumers and the food industry. About 10 per cent of the food we now buy is likely to be adulterated, and 7 per cent may have fraudulent ingredients. According to the US Center for Disease Control, 3,000 peoplediefromfoodpoisoningannually. Presence of hydrogenated oils, Bisphenol- A, or BPA, is a chemical that is commonly found in certain plastics, high fructose corn syrup, industrial chemical melamine, “If your child faces the problem of diarrhea and doesn't grow properly despite giving proper baby milk, then he is a victim of adulterated baby milk or milk powder,” said Dr K.N. Agarwal, a well-knownchildspecialist. 8
- 2. ISSUE 30 Cover Story perchlorate- a chemical found in rocket fuel, synthetic vitamins and minerals of questionable measurements have further compounded the risks faced by young children. Research indicates that manganese, a neurotoxic chemical is found in much higher concentrations in baby formula, particularly soy-based formulas, than in breast milk. Even soy-based formulas contain about 80 times as much manganese as mother's milk, while animal-based formulas contain about 30 times more. Elevated manganese levels have been linked to behavioral problems, such as Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) later in life. Babies are not able to absorb and excrete excess manganese duringthefirstyearof life. Considering these horrifying facts, what's even worse is that even if babies die after ingesting formula, there is no law that can affix responsibility on any company. While international brands are brought into India under sketchy guidelines, there are plenty of Indian web portals who are selling imported baby formulas, without any supervision. This has further opened thedoor todanger. ProblemsatPackagingLevel Meanwhile, according to Bureau of Indian Standards, currently there is a product certification scheme that allows more than 30,000 licensees to use the ISI mark as a symbolofqualityproduct. “There are two standards on infant food products, one for infant food substitutes and other for follow cereal based food,” Gopi Nath, a scientist at the BIS said. However, when asked what steps has the BIS has taken to curb the menace of fake infant milk powder, he said there are many steps that have been defined by the FSSAI. “The FSSAI has regulated to sell these products only after getting the BIS certification,”headded. However, experts feel it's quite easy for unscrupulous manufacturers to produce fake ISI mark with the advancement in digital photo-copying machine. The increasing number of counterfeit ISI mark products has become a menace for the Government authorities and legitimate brandowners. Anti-counterfeiting technologies play an important role in guarding product safety andsocialstability. A t p r e s e n t , a n t i - c o u n t e r f e i t i n g technologies have been extensively applied to various industries, including pharmaceuticals, consumer goods, luxury handbags, clothing, cosmetics, etc. Firms deploy anti-counterfeiting technology as a strategic tool to ensure the authenticity of brandedproductsandbusiness reputations. Authentic logos, seals, and security printing can be included in packages to help indicate that the content and the package are genuine. At present, a range of anti- counterfeiting solutions– such as holograms, colourshifting inks, security labels, EPCs, electronic data interchanges, and RFID – are available to enhance product authentication and to play the trace and track role in supply chains. Many industries have incorporated advanced anti-counterfeiting solutions to enhance their brand reputation and ensure product safety. In addition to the pharmaceutical industry, food, beverage, and wine producers are constantly looking for anti- counterfeiting solutions to ensure the authenticity of their branded products and protect public safety. Here, shrink-wrapped containers embossed with three- dimensional anti-counterfeiting solutions bestow a unique pattern. Manufacturers claim that heat-shrink labels with integrated holograms help the wine and beverage industry in the fight against counterfeiting and forgery. Various newly developed anti-counterfeiting solutions have been increasingly applied to high-end products and by the drug and food industries.As a result, the cost of goods has keptrising. In 2008, a significant portion of China's milk supply was found to have been contaminated with melamine. Infant formula produced from melamine-tainted milk killed at least six children and was believed to have harmed thousands of others. Melamine is an organic base chemical, most commonly found in the form of white crystals rich in nitrogen. Melamine is widely used in plastics, adhesives, countertops, dishwareand whiteboards. In China, where adulteration has occurred, water is added to raw milk to increase its volume. As a result of this dilution the adulterated milk has a lower protein concentration. Companies using the milk for further production (e.g. of powdered infant formula) normally check the protein level through a test measuring nitrogen content. The addition of melamine increases the nitrogen content of the milk and therefore its apparent protein content. Addition of melamine into food is not approved by the FAO/WHO Codex Alimentarius (food standard commission), or by any national authorities. CHINA'SMILKSCAM 9
- 3. ISSUE 30Cover Story Conclusion: “Managing food safety standards across a global supply chain is complex and challenging. However, steps must be taken to ensure safe and secure shipping and distribution of food products that end up in consumer's hands. To protect the 25 million babies born every year in India, it is essential to protect baby milk powders and other nutritional products from the scourge of counterfeiting. This can be achieved by securing supply chains through authentication, track-and-trace and other digital solutions, as well as by applying tamper-proof or tamper-evident physical solutions onto packaging, such as security labels and holograms. Government has a big role to play in mandating such measures in the interest of public health and safety while also generating awareness of the issue. Only by all stakeholders - industry, government, solution providers - coming together can we protect the health of the mostvulnerablemembersof our society.” On October 26, 2015, COVECTRA®, a privately held, international serialization, authentication, and track and trace technology services provider with offices in US and in Ireland, announced the launch of its holistic, integrated serialization-based solution for protecting infant formula from counterfeiting. This system, which was developed to meet the increasing need for brand and supply chain integrity of infant formula, particularly given the recent increase of illicit trading activity and supply chain leakage in markets such as China, also enables track & trace and diversion detection of these products through the supply chain and intothe handsofthe consumer. The principle of the solution is the application of a serialized unique barcode (QR, 2D or 1D) to the can's bottom and all levels of packaging (case and pallet) so that it can tracked through the supply chain. The serialization system consists of the following components: ® ® Ÿ AuthentiTrack database (hosted in Microsoft Azure Cloud) for generating and managing all serial numbers, including all events (e.g. scans) associated withthat barcode. Ÿ Packaging line serialization system, that uses open software architecture and Rockwell Automation technology to print and verify barcodes on each level ofpackaging. Ÿ Downstream supply chain traceability system, which can be used to track products throughout the distribution system, and to detect incidents of gray market diversion. Supply chain partners are able to re- aggregate re-worked pallets that were damaged in shipment.Consumer-friendly and highly secure authentication features which can be place on various parts ofthe can. INFANTFORMULASERIALIZATION Sources: 1. ISI mark on your milk powder may be a counterfeit, MAIL Today by Neetu Chandra. 2. 70% of milk in Delhi, country is adulterated, Times of India, http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/70-of-milk-in-Delhi-country-is- adulterated/articleshow/11429910.cms 3 . B e w a r e ! T h e m i l k y o u b u y m a y n o t b e s a f e e n o u g h , http://bangalore.citizenmatters.in/articles/milk-adulteration-neutralizer-food- adulteration-bangalore?utm_source=copy 4. Trends and Solutions in Combating Global Food Fraud, Patrick Pimentel, Food andSafetyMagazine,March2014 5. Food Safety and Agricultural Health Standards (2005) Challenges and Opportunities for Developing Country Exports. Report No. 31207. 2005. Available athttp://www.worldbank.org/trade/standards. Last accessed1October2005 6. Milk adulteration with melamine in China: crisis and response, Quality AssuranceandSafetyofCrops &Foods ISSN1757-8361 7. Supply Chain Issues in China's Milk Adulteration Incident, International Association of Agricultural Economists' 2009 Conference, Beijing, China, August 16-22,2009 8.The2008MilkScandalRevisited,Yanzhong Huang, Forbes 9. Food adulteration: a much bigger problem than assumed, http://www.dw.com/en/food-adulteration-a-much-bigger-problem-than- assumed/a-5778587 1 0 . Ta i n t e d m i l k : U n r a v e l l i n g C h i n a ' s m e l a m i n e s c a n d a l , http://thinkbusiness.nus.edu/articles/item/118-tainted-milk-unravelling- china%E2%80%99s-melamine-scandal 11. Fake baby milk powder causes rethink: Bureau of Indian Standards to use high security OVD to control counterfeit milk powder, Daily Mail, http://www.dailymail.co.uk/indiahome/indianews/article-3780369/Fake-baby- milk-powder-causes-rethink-Bureau-Indian-Standards-use-high-security-OVD- control-counterfeit-milk-powder.html 12. BIS raids five companies for misusing 'ISI' mark, Economic Times, http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2015-08-24/news/65808586_1_isi- mark-drinking-water-bis-raids 13. Large quanitity of packaged water bearing fake ISI mark seized in pune, DNA, http://www.dnaindia.com/pune/report-large-quantity-of-packaged-water- bearing-fake-isi-mark-seized-in-pune-2098864 14. BIS raids on manufacturer of Packaged drinking water with spurious bis standard mark, http://www.thehansindia.com/posts/index/Crime/2016-03-29/Bis- raids-on-manufacturer-of-Packaged-drinking-water-with-spurious-bis-standard- mark/217331 15. Goan consumers not informed about ISI mark, Times of India http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/goa/Goan-consumers-not-informed- about-ISI-mark/articleshow/37416548.cms 16. ACaseStudyofMelamineas a CounterfeitFoodProduct AdditiveinChineseHuman and Animal Food Supply Chain Networks, Anti-Counterfeiting and Product P r o t e c t i o n P r o g r a m , h t t p : / / a - capp.msu.edu/sites/default/files/files/MelamineCaseStudy_Final.pdf 17. 2 out of 3 Indians drink milk laced with detergent, urea andpaint, Hindustan Times, NewDelhi,Mar 17, 2016 10