FSSAI survey on in 766 dists to test milk, dairy products
The exercise will continue till October, and the country’s apex food regulator is expected to submit its report to the Health Ministry by December
KOLKATA: The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has started a nationwide surveillance study on milk and milk products this month in a bid to curb adulteration of such items, an official said on Monday.
The exercise will continue till October, and the country’s apex food regulator is expected to submit its report to the Health Ministry by December, FSSAI Advisor (Quality Assurance) Satyen K Panda said.
“The surveillance survey will cover 766 districts across the country and over 10,000 samples will be collected during the exercise. Two agencies have been engaged for the purpose,” he said. The Quality Council of India, an autonomous body under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, and the National Dairy Development Board will conduct the survey for FSSAI, Panda said.
“The scope for the survey includes milk, khoa, chenna, paneer, ghee, butter, curd, and ice cream. The test parameters are adulterants, normal quality and compositional parameters, contaminants, antibiotic residues and microbiological indicators,” he said.
The study was initiated to assess milk and milk products sold in the country for compliance with the Food Safety and Standards Regulations, and also to identify hotspots for adulteration. One of the objectives of the survey is to devise corrective action strategies, he said.
