The United States was using genome editing technology on potatoes to knock down acrylamide
Several other popular packaged snacks like those selling potato chips and Kurkure, largely patronised by children, have come under the scanner with food safety authorities in Delhi going on a testing spree.
Chennai: The sense of insecurity among the households over safety of foods they consume has peaked and the Maggi controversy has opened a can of worms unleashing unprecedented public outcry. Now, several other popular packaged snacks like those selling potato chips and Kurkure, largely patronised by children, have come under the scanner with food safety authorities in Delhi going on a testing spree.
Deccan Chronicle spoke to a cross-section of people, including mothers, food scientists, doctors and social activists to understand the reason for big multinationals daring to sell sub-standard and hazardous foods in India by flouting safety norms. S. Jayanthi, a housewife and mother of a 14-year-old girl, said: “My doctor keeps saying these packaged snacks with added preservatives are ‘unhealthy’, but I ignored the cautions just to provide a quick meal to my daughter before she goes to school. Now, she is literally addicted to instant noodles. The news of Maggi containing high levels of lead and MSG has come as a shock. I strongly suspect there would be many more products flouting food safety norms.”
Another housewife, K. Anju, feels that food adulteration is another area of grave concern. “Products like chilli powder, ghee, milk and chocolates are commonly adulterated. Of late, there are several local brands that have cropped up — some of which don’t even print the ingredients. I have been in UAE for a couple of years and if we compare the quality of our products with theirs of the same brand, there is a vast difference and the irony is we pay a higher price. For example, the Johnson & Johnson baby soap available in India and that of UAE is totally different. Why should we Indians pay a higher price for sub-standard products? The answer is very simple. The Indian government and authorities are manageable and have the tendency to compromise their own people’s interests for monetary gains,” she said.
Dr Sivaprakash Ramalingam, scientist at M.S. Swaminathan Research Foundation (MSSRF), said during a paper presentation on genome editing technology that potato stored in cold storage to use for preparing chips, French fries and other processed products will contain a neurotoxin called acrylamide, which is a potential cancer-causing agent.
The United States was using genome editing technology on potatoes to knock down acrylamide. A 2005 study conducted by the Environmental Law Foundation (ELF) demonstrated that potato chips surpass the legal limit of acrylamide levels by as little as 39 times and as much as 900 times! During cooking, sugars and an amino acid called asparagine can react to form acrylamide. Starchy, carbohydrate-rich foods, such as potato chips and french fries contain the highest levels of acrylamide, but truthfully any food cooked at temperatures higher than 250 degrees F pose a possible risk. Even coffee contains acrylamide, said noted public health expert, Dr Rakhal Gaitonde.
“The issue is multi-dimensional. The present nutritional situation in India is people are moving towards packaged foods. Many more new chemicals and preservatives are being added to enhance the taste and texture whose long-term health effects are not even studied. Maggi got exposed because we know what lead can do to your health. The government should seriously think of upgrading the food safety norms,” Dr Gaitonde said.
( Source : deccan chronicle )
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