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PREAMBLE
Adulteration of foodstuffs is commonly practiced in our country by the trade. From the view point of protecting the health of the consumer, the Government of India promulgated the ‘Prevention of Food Adulteration Act’ (PFA Act) in 1954. The Act came into force from 1st June, 1955. It prohibits the manufacture, sale and distribution of not only adulterated foods but also foods contaminated with toxicants and misbranded foods.
According to PFA Act, an article of food shall be deemed to be adulterated:
(a) If the article sold by the vendor is not of the nature, substance or quality demanded by the purchaser or is not of the nature, substance or quality which it proports or is represented to be,
(b) If the article contains any other substance which affects injuriously the nature, substance or quality thereof,
(c) If any inferior or cheaper substance has been substituted wholly or partly which affects the quality of food.
If any constituent of the food has been abstracted or partly so
As to affect injuriously the quality of food.
(d) If the food article has been prepared, packed or kept under insanitary conditions whereby it has become contaminated or injurious to health ,
(e) If the article consists wholly or in part of any filthy, putrid, rotten, decomposed or diseased animal or vegetable substance or is insect infested or otherwise unfit for human consumption.
(f) If the article is obtained from a diseased animal,
(g) If the article contains any poisonous or other ingredient which renders it injurious to health,
(h) If the container of article is composed , whether wholly or in part, of any poisonous or deleterious or deleterious substance which renders its contents injurious to health,
(i) If any colouring matter other than that prescribed or if the amounts of prescribed colouring matter are not within the prescribed limits of variability.
(j) If the article contains any prohibited preservative, or permitted preservatives in excess of the prescribed limits,
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(k) If the quality or purity of the article falls below the prescribed standard or its constituents are present in quantities not within the prescribed limits of variability which renders it injurious to health.
(l) If the quality or purity of the article falls below the prescribed standard or its constituents are present in quantities not within the prescribed limits of variability but which does not render it injurious to health.
Provided that, where the quality or purity of the article, being primary food, has fallen below the prescribed standards or its constituents are present in quantities not within the prescribed limits of variability, in either case, solely due to natural causes and beyond the control of human agency, then, such article shall not be deemed to be adultered
The rules laid down under PFA Acct apply equally and essentially to all articles of food, including milk and milk products. It is evident from the PFA Act that food adulteration includes:
1. Intentional addition, substitution or abstraction of substances which adversely affect the quality of foods,
2. Incidental contamination of foods with deleterious constituents such as toxins, pesticides, pathogenic micro organisms etc., due to ignorance, negligence or lack of proper storage facilities,
3. Contamination of food with harmful microorganisms during production, packaging, storage and distribution.
Fraudulent Character
As to the character of adulteration, generally encountered in market foods, 9 out of 10 adulterated foods are so classed by reason of the addition Of cheaper though harmless ingredients added for commercial profit rather than by the addition of actually poisonous or injurious substances, though occasional instances of the latter are found. Authentic instances of actual danger to health from the presence of injurious ingredients are rare so that the question of food adulteration should logically be met largely on the ground of its fraudulent character.
Nature Of Adulteration
Before going into the details of hazards of adulteration, we will have a look on the nature of adulterants generally encountered in milk and milk products.
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