Samples of mustard oil which is a key ingredient in every Indian household were found to be 100 per cent adulterated in five cities of Uttarakhand. Society of Pollution and Environmental Conservation Scientists (SPECS) secretary Brij Mohan Sharma said this while releasing the results of the sample tests conducted by the society here on Thursday.

He informed that 469 samples of mustard oil were collected from households of 20 cities out of which, 415 were found adulterated. “We collected and tested 469 samples of mustard oil from June to September. We found that samples of oils collected from five cities including Mussoorie, Rudraprayag, Joshimath, Gopeshwar and Almora are 100 per cent adulterated. The adulteration rate found in the samples collected from Uttarkashi, Dehradun, Pithoragarh, Tehri and Haldwani was 90 per cent and above,” stated Sharma. According to SPECS the samples collected from Vikasnagar, Doiwala and Srinagar have 80 per cent adulteration.

Samples collected from Rishikesh, Nainital, Ramnagar, Haridwar and Rudrapur were found to have 75, 71, 67, 65 and 60 per cent adulteration respectively. Samples from Jaspur and Kashipur had comparatively low adulteration at 40 and 50 per cent respectively. Sharma said that most of the adulterated samples contain metanil yellow colour, castor oil, white oil, argemone oil and an excessive amount of hexane. Consumption of food cooked in such adulterated oil can cause gastrointestinal issues like diarrhoea and loss of appetite, swelling, skin irritation which can turn severe in the long run. He said that locals can test the samples of mustard oil at home before using it for consumption with simple methods. “If the physical condition of the mustard oil changes- colour and odour after adding a few drops of lemon juice, it indicates adulteration. If the oil freezes after storing in refrigeration for about three hours, it indicates adulteration too.”