HYDERABAD: With Karnataka issuing orders to ban the use of artificial colouring agents found in food items like cotton candy and Gobi Manchurian saying they contain carcinogenic compounds, the Telangana government is yet to take any decision to curb the use of chemicals and artificial colourings in food beyond permissible limits.
The Tamil Nadu government had earlier banned cotton candy, while Mapusa, a town in northern Goa, banned Gobi Manchurian due to the use of chemical additives and colours. The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has specified the standard permissible limit for various food additives to be used in a range of food products. However, unless any samples are collected and tested, it would not be possible to infer if the artificial colours and chemicals were being used within acceptable limits in food items across the city.
A senior official from the food safety department told TNIE, “As per the FSSAI norms, no artificial colour is to be added to prepared food. Food colour is only allowed in sweets and savoury items, that too within the permitted levels of 100 mg/kg. Even for dishes like biryani, saffron, which is a natural colouring spice, is advised. Although there is no discussion on banning any food items as of now, we urge the local stalls and food vendors not to use artificial colours. Moreover, people while eating at restaurants and eateries should ask them not to add any colours to their food items, which will also help curb this practice.”
‘Manchurian in high demand’
On the other hand, the food vendors in the city opined that banning any specific items would not address the issue of the rampant overuse of chemicals in food. They added that the dishes are usually prepared on specific instructions of the customers, who might want a certain food item to be spicy or look a certain way.
Md Ilyas, an Indo-Chinese food vendor from Suncity, said, “We don’t use artificial colours in the dishes that we prepare. But certain artificial food colours must be banned. However, banning such food items will not solve the issue and would rather affect the business of small-scale street food vendors”.
Another Indo-Chinese food stall vendor K Vivek said, “Manchurian is one of the most high-demanded food items. Even if it is banned, customers will still ask for it and the ban will cause losses to our small-scale business. So I don’t think banning any food item is the right thing to do, rather certain regulations should be put in place to ensure that the quality of food is maintained.”
Doctor bats for ban
Meanwhile, a city doctor said that artificial colours and chemicals were extremely harmful to gut health and can even lead to cancer. Dr.Abdul Wadood Ahmed, a gastroenterologist with a private hospital, stressed that a ban must be imposed on the artificial colours available in the market.
“In the food industry, the practice of adding numerous synthetic preservatives and artificial food colours to food items is widespread. The most prominently used colouring agent is Benzidine, which is carcinogenic. Many processed food products and street food items utilise artificial colours containing Benzidine, which is extremely harmful to the body and can lead to cancer. For some time now, there has been a rise in colon and gastric cancers, attributable not only to processed food, preservatives and artificial colouring agents but also to other factors such as genetic disposition, poor nutrition, stress and urbanisation,” he told TNIE.
However, Dr Ahmed said that awareness must be created among people and they must be educated about artificial colours, instead of implementing premature bans on any specific food items.