Adulteration in food is normally present in its most

crude form, prohibited substances are either

added or partly or wholly substituted. In India
normally the contamination/adulteration in food is
done either for financial gain or due to
carelessness and lack in proper hygienic condition
of processing, storing, transportation and
marketing. This ultimately results that the
consumer is either cheated or often become victim
of diseases. Such types of adulteration are quite
common in developing countries or backward
countries. However, adequate precautions taken
by the consumer at the time of purchase of such
produce can make him alert to avoid procurement
of such food. It is equally important for the
consumer to know the common adulterants and
their effect on health.

Food... the basic necessity of life.

We toil day and night for what? For that two morsel of
wholesome nutritive food. And if at the end of the day
we are not sure of what we eat, than what are we toiling
for? We may be eating a dangerous dye, sawdust, soap
stone, industrial starch, Aluminum foil and believe it,
even horse-dung! Inviting disease rather than good
health. And what are the law enforcing authorities
doing? Looking the other way, ignoring, sitting on files
and being bought and bribed.

Milk... that ever-enduring milk. For time immemorial it

had had been the basic staple food right from our
growing up stage, to when we have grown up. As a child
we need it for growth and as a grown up we need it for
replenishing our nutrition daily. Tired and bogged down,
need something to rejuvenate... take a glass of milk. But
even this has not been spared.

Common adulterant, addition of water, flour, or any other

starchy material say industrial starch. Addition of water
and extraction of fat is very common and not harmful.
But what when the milk you drink is not milk at all?
Rather combination of urea, liquid detergent, a little
sugar, vegetable oil and water... a Synthetic Milk!
Remember the case in Delhi, where the racket was
busted a few years back and there was a lot of hue and
cry in the media regarding the same. Think of all those
children who may have had the synthetic milk, what
havoc it must have created for their system physically.
And how are we sure that even now, we are not being
supplied the same milk? Are the authorities doing any
thing like random checking of milk and regular intervals?

Turmeric is the basic ingredient of all our Indian cooking.

Any Indian dish is not complete without it. But before
you buy your next quota of this "masala" be careful of
what you are buying. It may be adulterated with, Lead
chromate, (which adds color as well as weight to it,
being heavier), Metanil Yellow dye Or any starch based
items like flour or rice powder or even industrial starch.
Except flour or rice powder, all the other adulterants are
health hazardous and cause irreparable damage to our
system when eaten at regular intervals for a long period
of time. Take for instance Lead chromate, it is one of the
most toxic salts of lead. It can cause anemia, paralyses,
mental retardation and brain damage in children and
abortion in pregnant women. Metanil yellow dye which is
another non-permissible toxic colorant, is used mostly to
color Besan or gram flour, pulses, miscellaneous
prepared foods namely sweetmeats like ladoo, burfi,
jelabi, dalmoth, papad, etc. to get that attractive deep
yellow color. Food grade colors are available in the
market but being more costly, traders take advantage of
the lackadaisical approach of the law enforcing
authorities and substitute it with the said cheap and
non-permissible dyes and colors.

While still on "Masalas" or spices, does one know what

are the common adulterants, take for instance, for
coriander powder or chili powder- sawdust, rice bran and
sand. But wait! One cannot even imagine or fathom-
horse-dung and cow-dung! This is not only unethical,
from the business point of view, but a sin committed
against the society at large. Any trader who is found
resorting to such means of adulterations should be taken
to task very strongly. People should try as far as possible
to buy whole spices and grind them at home or purchase
properly packed spices (with proper informative labeling)
of standard F.P.O. I.S.I or AGMARK certified companies.

Has anyone ever given a thought why the puffed rice or

any other white colored eatable looks so dazzling white
and bright, and attractive on the show windows of a
sweetmeat shop? Well they may have been treated by
ultra marine blue a chemical dye which is a non-
permissible and prohibited. And for that rich deep pink
color (Gulaabi) Rhodamin-B is used- again a non-
permissible colorant. This colorant has also proven to be
carcinogenic.
Argemone seeds that grow as weeds in the mustered
fields are mixed with mustered seeds and its oil is mixed
with mustered oil. Just a trace amount is all right, but
when added deliberately it causes serious health hazards
and even death. Dropsy is a straight after effect of
consumption of this oil. It may also cause swelling,
irregular fever, low pulse rate, enlargement of the liver,
respiratory distress which may lead to heart failure.
Adulteration of oil has become rampant, with a wide
variety of oils available in the market, the consumer is
not sure what combination of oils he gets when he buys
it loose from the market. It is very harmful and
hazardous to health when mixed with crude castor oil,
industrial palmolein-oil, mineral oils etc. This is certainly
a crime against humanity aimed at earning money at the
cost of public health.

Ghee is adulterated to the extent of 80 to 85 percent

with Vanaspati . In actuality it is Vanaspati flavored with
15 or 20 percent of ghee by special process. Even in the
year 1935-36 when, six samples of so called pure ghee
was collected it was found that they were adulterated
with vegetable products made from groundnut, and
other oils and the extent of adulteration was up to 80
percent.

Sand, dirt, earth, gritty matter, soap stone, common salt

are added to flour, refined flour (maida), gram flour
(besan), spices, sugar, tea-dust and coffee. And washing
soda is added to table salt. In tea-dust one can even
finds iron filings. And remember that lovely silver leaves
used to decorate sweetmeats, burfi, and pan, you may
be surprised what it is. It may be aluminum leave or foil,
which is again very bad for health, causing a lot of
physical complications.

Dried seeds of volatile oil are added to cloves, while

mineral acids to vinegar, papaya seeds to black pepper.
Aniseed or 'sauf' that after food tit-bit, is dyed with
malachite green dye for that nice green color. In food
grains and whole spices extraneous matter like stalks,
stems, and foreign seeds are added.

Injurious Adulterants/Contaminants in Foods and

their Health Effects

S Adulterant Foods Commonly Diseases or Health

.No Involved Effects
Adulterants in food
1 Argemone seeds Mustard seeds Epidemic dropsy,

Argemone oil Edible oils and fats Glaucoma,

Cardiac arrest
2 Artificially As a substitute for Injurious to health
coloured foreign cumin seed,
seeds
Poppy seed, black
pepper
3 Foreign leaves or Tea Injurious to
exhausted tea health, cancer
leaves, saw dust
artificially
coloured
4 TCP Oils Paralysis
5 Rancid oil Oils Destroys vitamin
 A and E
6 Sand, marble Food grains, pulses Damage digestive
chips, stones, filth etc. tract
7 Lathyrus sativus Khesari dal alone or Lathyrism
(crippling spastic
Mixed in other paraplegia)
pulses
Chemical
Contamination
8 Mineral oil (white Edible oils and fats, Cancer
oil, petroleum
fractions) Black pepper
9 Lead chromate Turmeric whole and Anemia, abortion,
powdered, mixed paralysis, brain
spices damage
10 Methanol Alcoholic liquors Blurred vision,
blindness, death
11 Arsenic Fruits such as Dizziness, chills,
apples sprayed cramps, paralysis,
over with lead death
arsenate
12 Barium Foods Violent
contaminated by peristalisis,
rat poisons arterial
(Barium carbonate) hypertension,
muscular
twitching,
convulsions,
cardiac
disturbances
13 Cadmium Fruit juices, soft ‘Itai-itai (ouch-
drinks, etc. in ouch) disease,
contact with Increased
cadmium plated salivation, acute
vessels or gastritis, liver and
equipment. kidney damage,
Cadmium prostrate cancer
contaminated water
and shell-fish
14 Cobalt Water, liquors Cardiac
insufficiency and
mycocardial
failure
15 Lead Water, natural and Lead poisoning
processed food (foot-drop,
insomnia, anemia,
constipation,
mental
retardation, brain
damage)

16 Copper Food Vomiting,

diarrhoea
17 Tin Food Colic, vomiting
18 Zinc Food Colic, vomiting
19 Mercury Mercury fungicide Brain damage,
treated seed grains paralysis, death
or mercury
contaminated fish

NOTE : Safe limits have been prescribed for above metals in

different food. Continuous use of food contaminated with
these metals beyond safe limits may cause these diseases
Bacterial
contamination
20 Bacillus cereus Cereal products, Food infection
custards, puddings, (nausea, vomiting,
sauces abdominal pain,
diarrhoea)
21 Salmonella spp. Meat and meat Salmonellosis
products, raw (food infection
vegetables, salads, usually with fever
shell-fish, eggs and and chills)
egg products,
 warmed-up
leftovers
22 Shigella sonnei Milk, potato, beans, Shigellosis
poultry, tuna, (bacillary
shrimp, moist dysentery)
mixed foods
23 Staphylococcus Dairy products, Increased
aureus baked foods salivation,
especially custard vomiting,
Entero-toxins- or cream-filled abdominal cramp,
A,B,C,D or E foods, meat and diarrhoea, severe
meat products, low- thirst, cold
acid frozen foods, sweats,
salads, cream prostration
sauces, etc.
24 Clostridium Defectively canned Botulism (double
botulinus toxins low or medium-acid vision, muscular
foods; meats, paralysis, death
A,B,E or F sausages, smoked due to respiratory
vacuum-packed failure)
fish, fermented
food etc.
25 Clostridium.perfrin Milk improperly Nausea,
gens processed or abdominal pains,
canned meats, fish diarrhoea, gas
(Welchii) type A and gravy stocks formation
26 Diethyl stilbestrol Meat Sterlites, fibroid
(additive in animal tumors etc.
feed)
27 3,4 Benzopyrene Skoked food Cancer
28 Excessive solvent Solvent extracted Carcinogenic
residue oil, oil cake etc. effect
29 Non-food grade or Food Blood clot,
contaminated angiosarcoma,
packing material cancer etc.
30 Non-permitted Coloured food Mental
colour or retardation,
permitted food cancer and other
colour beyond safe toxic effect.
 limit
31 BHA and BHT Oils and fats Allergy, liver
beyond safe limit damage, increase
in serum
chloresterol etc.
32 Monosodium Chinese food, meat Brain damage,
glutamate(flour) and meat products mental retardation
(beyond safe limit) in infants
33 Coumarin and Flavoured food Blood
dihydro coumarin anticoagulant
34 Food flavours Flavoured food Chances of liver
beyond safe limit cancer
35 Brominated Cold drinks Anemia,
vegetable oils enlargement of
heart
36 Sulphur dioxide In variety of food as Acute irritation of
and sulphite preservative the gastro-
beyond safe limit intestinal tracts
etc.
37 Artificial Sweet foods Chances of cancer
sweetners beyond
safe limit
Fungal
contamination
38 Aflatoxins Aspergillus flavus- Liver damage and
contaminated foods cancer
such as
groundnuts,
cottonseed, etc.
39 Ergot alkaloids Ergot-infested Ergotism
from Claviceps bajra, rye meal or (St.Anthony’s fire-
purpurea Toxic bread burning sensation
alkaloids, in extremities,
ergotamine, itching of skin,
ergotoxin and peripheral
ergometrine gangrene)
groups
40 Toxins from Grains (millet, Alimentary toxic
 wheat, oats, aleukia(ATA)
Fusarium rye,etc) (epidemic
sporotrichioides panmyelotoxicosis
)
41 Toxins from Moist grains Urov disease
Fusarium (Kaschin-Beck
sporotrichiella disease)
42 Toxins from Yellow rice Toxic mouldy rice
disease
Penicillium
inslandicum

Penicillium
atricum,

Penicillium
citreovirede,

Fusarium,
Rhizopus,

Aspergillus
43 Sterigmatocystin Foodgrains Hepatitis
from

Aspergillus
versicolour

Aspergillus
nidulans and
bipolaris
44 Ascaris Any raw food or Ascariasis
lumbricoides water contaminated
by human faces
containing eggs of
the parasite
45 Entamoeba Raw vegetables and Amoebic
histolytica fruits dysentery
 Viral

46 Virus of infectious Shell-fish, milk, Infectious

unheated foods hepatitis
Hepatitis (virus A) contaminated with
faeces, urine and
blood of infected
human
47 Machupo virus Foods Bolivian
contaminated with haemorrhagic
rodents urine, such fever
as cereals
Natural
Contamination
48 Flouride Drinking water, sea Excess fluoride
foods, tea, etc. causes fluorosis
(mottling of teeth,
skeletal and
neurological
disorders)
49 Oxalic acid Spinach, amaranth, Renal calculi,
etc. cramps, failure of
blood to clot
50 Gossypol Cottonseed flour Cancer
and cake
51 Cyanogenetic Bitter almonds, Gastro-intestinal
compounds apple seeds, disturbances
cassava, some
beans etc.
52 Polycyclic AromaticSmoked fish, meat, Cancer
mineral oil-
Hydrocarbons(PAH contaminated
) water, oils, fats and
fish, especially
shell-fish
53 Phalloidine Toxic mushrooms Mushroom
(Alkaloid) poisoning
 (Hypoglycemia,
convulsions,
profuse watery
stools, severe
necrosis of liver
leading to hepatic
failure and death)
54 Solanine Potatoes Solanine
poisoning
(vomiting,
abdominal pain,
diarrhoea)
55 Nitrates and Drinking water, Methaemoglobina
Nitrites spinach rhubarb, emia especially in
asparagus, etc. and infants, cancer
meat products and tumours in
the liver, kidney,
trachea
oesophagus and
lungs. The liver is
the initial site but
afterwards
tumours appear in
other organs.
56 Asbestos (may be Polished rice, Absorption in
present in talc, pulses, processed particulate form
Kaolin, etc. and in foods containing by the body may
processed foods) anti-caking agents, produce cancer
etc.
57 Pesticide residues All types of food Acute or chronic
(beyond safe limit) poisoning with
damage to nerves
and vital organs
like liver, kidney,
etc.
58 Antibiotics Meats from Multiple drug
(beyond safe limit) antibiotic-fed resistance
animals hardening of
arteries, heart
 disease

TESTS TO DETECT ADULTERATION IN MILK

There are many methods known for detection of adulteration in
milk but the methods discussed below are simple but rapid and
sensitive methods to detect adulteration.

I. Detection of Neutralizers in milk

1) Rosalic acid test (Soda Test)

In milk neutralizers like hydrated lime, sodium hydroxide, sodium

carbonate or sodium bicarbonate are added which are generally
prohibited.

How to detect?

Take 5 ml of milk in a test tube and add 5 ml alcohol followed by

4-5 drops of rosalic acid. If the colour of milk changes to pinkish
red, then it is inferred that the milk is adulterated with sodium
carbonate / sodium bicarbonate and hence unfit for human
consumption.

This test will be effective only if the neutralizers are present in

milk. If the added neutralizers are nullified by the developed
acidity, then this test will be negative. In that case, the alkaline
condition of the milk for the presence of soda ash has to be
estimated.

How to proceed?

2) Take 20 ml of milk in a silica crucible and then the water is

evaporated and the contents are burnt in a muffle furnace. The
ash is dispersed in 10 ml distilled water and it is titrated against
decinormal (N/10) hydrochloric acid using phenolphthalein as an
indicator. If the titre value exceeds 1.2 ml, then it is construed
that the milk is adulterated with neutralizers.

II. Test for detection of hydrogen peroxide

Take 5 ml milk in a test tube and then add 5 drops of

paraphenylene diamine and shake it well. Change of the colour of
milk to blue confirms that the milk is added with hydrogen
peroxide.

III. Test for detection of formalin

Formalin (40%) is poisonous though it can preserve milk for a

long time.

How to detect?

Take 10 ml of milk in test tube and 5 ml of conc. sulphuric acid is

added on the sides of the test tube with out shaking. If a violet
or blue ring appears at the intersection of the two layers, then it
shows the presence of formalin.

IV. Test for detection of sugar in milk

Generally sugar is mixed in the milk to increase the solids not fat
content of milk i.e. to increase the lactometer reading of milk,
which was already diluted with water.

How to detect?

Take 10 ml of milk in a test tube and add 5 ml of hydrochloric

acid along with 0.1 g of resorcinol. Then shake the test tube well
and place the test tube in a boiling water bath for 5 min.
Appearance of red colour indicates the presence of added sugar
in milk.

V. Test for detection of starch

Addition of starch also increases the SNF content of milk. Apart

from the starch, wheat flour, arrowroot, rice flour are also added.
How to detect?

Take 3 ml milk in a test tube and boil it thoroughly. Then milk is

cooled to room temperature and added with 2 to 3 drops of 1%
iodine solution. Change of colour to blue indicates that the milk
is adulterated with starch.

VI. Test for detection of glucose

Usually poor quality glucose is added to milk to increase the

lactometer reading. There are two tests available to detect the
adulteration of milk with glucose.

How to proceed?

1. Phosphomolybdic or Barford Test

Take 3 ml of milk in a test tube and add 3 ml Barford’s reagent

and mix it thoroughly. Then keep it in a boiling water bath for 3
min and then cool it for 2 min by immersing in tap water with out
disturbance. Then add 1 ml of phosphomolybdic acid and shake.
If blue colour is visible, then glucose is present in the milk
sample.

2. Diacetic test

Take a strip of diacetic strip and dip it in the milk for 30 sec to 1
min. If the strip changes colour, then it shows that the sample of
milk contains glucose. If there is no change in the colour of the
strip, then glucose is absent. In this method the presence of
glucose in milk can be quantified by comparing the colour
developed with the chart strip.

VII. Test for detection of urea

1. Urea is generally added in the preparation of synthetic milk to

raise the SNF value.

Five ml of milk is mixed well with 5 ml paradimethyl amino

benzaldehyde (16%). If the solution turns yellow in colour, then
the given sample of milk is added with urea.
2. Take 5 ml of milk in a test tube and add 0.2 ml of urease (20
mg / ml). Shake well at room temperature and then add 0.1 ml of
bromothymol blue solution (0.5%). Appearance of blue colour
after 10-15 min indicates the adulteration milk with urea.

VIII. Test for detection of ammonium sulphate

The presence of sulphate in milk increases the lactometer

reading.

How to proceed?

5 ml of hot milk is taken in a test tube and added with a suitable

acid for e.g. citric acid and the whey thus separated is filtered.
Collect the whey in another test tube and add 0.5 ml of 5%
barium chloride. Appearance of precipitate indicates the
presence of ammonium sulphate in milk.

IX. Test for detection of salt

Addition of salt in milk is mainly resorted to with the aim of

increasing the corrected lactometer reading.

How to detect?

Five ml of silver nitrate (0.8%) is taken in a test tube and added

with 2 to 3 drops of 1% potassium dichromate and 1 ml of milk
and thoroughly mixed. If the contents of the test tube turn
yellow in colour, then milk contains salt in it. If it is chocolate
coloured, then the milk is free from salt.

X. Test for detection of pulverized soap

Take 10 ml of milk in a test tube and dilute it with equal quantity

of hot water and then add 1 – 2 drops of phenolphthalein
indicator. Development of pink colour indicates that the milk is
adulterated with soap.

XI. Detection of detergents in milk

Take 5 ml of milk in a test tube and add 0.1 ml of bromocresol
purple solution. Appearance of violet colour indicates the
presence of detergent in milk. Unadulterated milk samples show
a faint violet colour.

XII. Detection of water in milk

Though the adulteration of milk with water can be checked by

lactometer reading, other adulterations too affect the lactometer
reading. Hence freezing point depression, recognized by AOAC, is
usually adopted.

Percentage of water added = Normal freezing point – Observed

freezing point X 100
Normal freezing
point

Normal freezing point of milk is taken as –0.55°C. A tolerance

level of 3% is given which is equivalent to specifying a minimum
freezing point depression for authentic milk of –0.55°C.

XIII. Detection of skim milk powder in milk

If the addition of nitric acid drop by drop in to the test milk

sample results in the development of orange colour, it indicates
the milk is adulterated with skim milk powder. Samples with out
skim milk powder shows yellow colour.

XIV. Detection of vegetable fat in milk

The characteristic feature of milk is its fatty acid composition,

which mainly consists of short chain fatty acids such as butyric,
caproic, caprylic acid; whereas the vegetable fats consist mainly
of long chain fatty acids and hence adulteration of vegetable fat
in milk can be easily found out by analyzing the fatty acid profile
by gas chromatography.

XV. Detection of buffalo milk in cow milk

The presence of buffalo milk in cow milk is tested by Hansa test.

It is based on immunological assay. One ml of milk is diluted with
4 ml of water and then it is treated with 1 ml of antiserum. The
characteristic precipitation reaction indicates the presence of
buffalo milk in the sample taken. (The antiserum is developed by
injecting buffalo milk proteins into rabbits).

XVI. Detection of benzoic and salicylic acid in milk

Five ml of milk is taken in a test tube and acidified with

concentrated sulphuric acid. 0.5% ferric chloride solution is
added drop by drop and mixed well. Development of buff colour
indicates presence of benzoic acid and violet colour indicates
salicylic acid.

XVII. Detection of borax and boric acid in milk

Five ml of milk is taken in a test tube to which 1 ml of

concentrated hydrochloric acid is added and mixed well. Tip of a
turmeric paper is dipped into the acidified milk and it is dried in
a watch glass at 100°C or over a small flame. If the turmeric
paper turns red, it indicates the presence of borax or boric acid.

Confirmation can be made by adding a drop of ammonia solution

on the turmeric paper and if the red colour changes to green, it
shows the presence of boric acid.