The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has recently revoked the manufacturing licenses of 111 spice producers across India, as The Times of India reported.
This action follows an extensive sampling and testing initiative that began in April, prompted by bans on popular Indian spice brands MDH Pvt. Ltd and Everest Food Products Pvt. in Singapore and Hong Kong. The bans were instituted after these countries detected the carcinogenic pesticide ethylene oxide in several products.
To date, FSSAI has collected around 4,000 samples nationwide and tested nearly 2,200 of them. The ongoing tests have revealed significant non-compliance, leading to the cancellation of licenses for some of India's most renowned spice brands, including Everest, MDH, Catch, and Badshah.
The majority of affected producers are small-scale firms, predominantly located in Kerala and Tamil Nadu, with additional firms under scrutiny in Gujarat, Maharashtra, and Madhya Pradesh.
Commonly adulterated spices such as turmeric, chilli powder, black pepper, cinnamon, and coriander powder have been found to contain harmful substances like starch, sawdust, artificial colours, and chemical dyes. These adulterants are used to increase volume and reduce production costs, severely compromising the safety and quality of the spices.
FSSAI has announced plans to increase the permissible levels of pesticides by tenfold as a measure to curb further adulteration.