Team of Raipur-based Food Safety Officers, Food and Drugs Administration, Chhattisgarh conducted an awareness-cum- warning drive on use of chemicals mainly food additives, preservatives unfit for human consumption and ice used by the fruit juice and soda vendors.
On Saturday, the drive was conducted from Ghadi Chowk to Swami Vivekanand Ashram square.
Roshini Rajput, Food Safety Officer when contacted said, “During summer months, there is increase in consumption of liquids in form of juice, ‘lassi’, sugarcane juice, lemon-soda, ‘aam ka panna’ and other liquid forms. There is also spurt of street vendors during summer months.
It has been found that generally these vendors use cheap and harmful chemicals for artificial colouring, sweeteners, chemical preservative, making crushed ice lolly (ice ka gola) which are unfit for human consumption or causes various diseases.
Keeping this in mind, the week-long drive is being conducted in capital city. The vendors and fruit juice sellers are being made aware not to use such chemicals, advised to use chemicals only which are prescribed by Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), not to use ice which is being used for commercial preservation, she said.
She pointed out with summer, the commercial ice used for preservation of fish and other products are picked up by these small time vendors and then served in the juices as it is cheap. It has potential hazard as it contains pathogenic micro-organisms, can cause jaundice or other water related diseases.
FSO added that next they will target the ice-factories to check the quality of water used for making ice.