Food safety regulator to test MDH, Everest spices: Report

The food safety regulator Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) on Monday ordered quality checks on products of popular Indian spice brands MDH and Everest Group following allegations of them containing a cancer-causing pesticide, Reuters reported citing a senior official.
According to the report, the inspections will test for the presence of ethylene oxide – a harmful pesticide unfit for human consumption and whose long-term exposure can cause cancer.
The government’s move comes hours after Hong Kong banned the sale of the two brands in the country – MDH and Everest, which have been in the Indian kitchens as a primary brand choice of spices – claiming that they detected the presence of carcinogenic pesticide ethylene oxide in several spice mixes. According to the Centre For Food Safety of the government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, they had collected samples of three of MDH’s pre-packaged spice products – ‘Madras Curry Powder’, ‘Sambhar Masala Powder’ and ‘Curry Powder’; and Everest Group’s ‘Fish Curry Masala’ for testing under its routine food surveillance programme when it detected the presence of the pesticide.
The CFS further instructed the concerned vendors in Tsim Sha Tsui city to stop selling those products and remove them from their shelves.
“The International Agency for Research on Cancer has classified ethylene oxide as a Group 1 carcinogen. According to the Pesticide Residues in Food Regulation (Cap. 132CM), a food for human consumption containing pesticide residue may only be sold if consumption of the food is not dangerous or prejudicial to health. An offender is liable to a maximum fine of $50,000 and imprisonment for six months upon conviction,” the Hong Kong authorities said in a notice.
Following this, Singapore also directed the importer of the spices to initiate a recall of the products.
“Those who have consumed the implicated products and have concerns about their health should seek medical advice. Consumers may contact their point of purchase for enquiries,” the Singapore Food Agency (SFA) said.
Notably, MDH company founded by Dharampal Gulati in 1959, and Everest – founded by Vadilal Shah – have been exporting to several places including the US, Europe, UK, and the Middle East.
(With inputs from Reuters)