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Making sure our food is safe
By Randima Attygalle
You're out shopping and a bottle of colourful cordial draws your attention. You pick up two bottles and then some kadachoru to go with it. An assortment of colourful chips, fancy packets and tins of yellow and pink follow. Do you know that these colourful drinks and food can be deceptive? With the aim of protecting the consumer, the Food Science Division of the Government Analyst's Department plays an important role in screening food and beverages available in the market for the presence of carcinogenic substances.

The functions of the Food Science Division include analysing and issuing of reports on food and liquor samples sent by the courts, the Police, the Excise Department, the Health Ministry and other government departments and statutory bodies, said Government Analyst E. G. Somapala.

"Once a sample of food or beverage (including liquor) is forwarded to us, we carry out a chemical analysis as opposed to a microbiological analysis," said Mr. Somapala. In a chemical analysis, the chemical constituents and their proportion in a food or a beverage (for instance nutrients of food) are taken into account and a quantitative report is made of substances used for adulteration and the non-permitted additives found in it.

"For each item of food and beverage, there is a permitted limit of additives and preservatives. However, there is a myth among manufacturers that adding more than this quantity will preserve the food or beverage for a longer period," explained Mr. Somapala adding that when non-permitted preservatives or a surplus of permitted preservatives or dyes are detected, they institute legal charges against the manufacturer.

The Government Analyst’s Department is a member of the Food Advisory Committee of the Ministry of Health and the Sectorial Committee of the Sri Lanka Standards Institution (SLSI). When these bodies formulate regulations, the Government Analyst’s Department acts as the consultant to monitor the provisions in accordance with the Food Act of No 26 of 1980 ( Amendment Act No 20 of 1991). Further, when a complaint is made to the Consumer Protection Authority, it is the duty of the Government Analyst’s Department to obtain the item of food or beverage in question for analysis.

"Under the Food Act, Public Health Inspectors (PHIs), Medical Officers of Health (MOHs) and Food and Drugs Inspectors are authorized to seize any item of food or beverage in the market which they think is unfit for human consumption and does not conform to accepted standards and send a sample to us for analysis," explained Mr. Somapala. Any consumer too who suspects a carcinogenic or harmful food substance in the market, can bring it to the notice of the PHI or MOH of the area. Although the Government Analyst’s Department in Colombo acts as the approved analyst for the whole island, there are approved Additional Analysts operating on a regional basis and SLSI-accredited private laboratories which are also empowered to provide their services to PHIs and consumers.

As to the procedure adopted in the seizure of articles, Mr. Somapala said, "When a PHI wishes to seize an article, the vendor is obliged to cooperate and if he is obstructive, it constitutes an offence under the Food Act. Once the item is seized, the PHI is expected to categorise it into three- analyst's sample, vendor's (he can have an independent analysis if he wishes to) and a referee sample which will be kept in courts. We analyse the analyst's sample and send a report to the PHI who will forward it to the Magistrate's Court of the relevant area."

The tests vary. "We do ashing for spices, curry powder and chillie powder to detect the mineral matter and for bottled water, an Ammonia test is done," explained Mr. Somapala. As for liquor, Samantha Wimalasena, Assistant Government Analyst said two different tests were done, one for quality control, to see if there is any illicit matter such as goda (found in kasippu) and the second for tax purposes (the tax depends on the alcohol content).

Regulations are to be implemented soon for quality control and mandatory registration for bottled water at the Health Ministry and SLSI. Deputy Government Analyst Deepika Seneviratne, explained the standards that bottled water should adhere to. "We check the percentage of ammonia, hardness of water and iron to see if the water is contaminated.”

Despite growing awareness among consumers, there still exist gray areas in the field of food science. For instance, the law does not make it mandatory for every new food or beverage introduced into the market to adhere to SLSI standards. Currently only selected items such as fruit drinks, jam and sugar should carry the SLSI mark. "Although every industry is required to be registered, there is no legal requirement for every product to conform to SLSI standards. It is also equally important to monitor the products that have been already recognized as reaching SLSI standards," said Mr. Somapala.

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