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Immediate tests on imported sugar
View(s):All imported sugar will be tested for toxic heavy metals with immediate effect, a top health official assured yesterday. A directive has been issued to test samples of imported sugar for heavy metals such as cadmium and arsenic, said Health Services Director-General
Dr. Palitha Mahipala who is also the Food Authority. He said the tests would start immediately at the Industrial Technological Institute (ITI) to ensure that Sri Lanka did not get sugar with harmful substances in it.
Recently, Agriculture Minister Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena said harmful substances had been found in white sugar imported from Brazil. Random tests on samples of Brazilian sugar had revealed a high level of toxic cadmium, the Minister had said, He said the sugar was also being tested for arsenic, which could cause serious health issues when ingested in high quantities. The Sunday Times on May 19 published a Page 1 lead story headlined ‘Toxic chemicals in imported white sugar’.
Minister Yapa Abeywardena said that random checks on local sugar and imported dhal, potatoes and onions did not show any toxic substances. Imported white sugar is not among the food items which undergo stringent inspection by the Sri Lanka Standards Institution (SLSI).
Imported brown sugar is among the 33 food items the SLSI is mandated to check under the Compulsory Import Inspection Scheme.
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