The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has conducted tests on samples of spices from major brands MDH and Everest and found no trace of ethylene oxide, a known carcinogen, according to sources familiar with the matter.
Reports from 28 accredited laboratories have been examined, with six reports still pending. The testing was initiated by FSSAI last month in response to quality concerns raised by Hong Kong and Singapore regarding certain spice mix products from MDH and Everest.
The products flagged by Hong Kong's Center for Food Safety (CFS) included MDH's Madras Curry Powder, Everest Fish Curry Masala, MDH Sambhar Masala Mixed Masala Powder, and MDH Curry Powder Mixed Masala Powder.
A nationwide drive was launched on April 22, coordinated by FSSAI and involving inspections of spice manufacturing units, as well as sampling and testing of products for domestic consumption. Samples were collected from Everest's two manufacturing facilities and MDH's 11 facilities.
Each sampled product underwent analysis for compliance with quality and safety parameters, including pesticide residues. Additionally, testing for Ethylene Oxide (ETO) was conducted at NABL-accredited laboratories, as notified by FSSAI.
The scientific panel at FSSAI reviewed the laboratory reports and confirmed the absence of ethylene oxide in the samples. Furthermore, reports from over 300 samples of spices from other brands also showed no presence of ethylene oxide.
The scientific panel comprises experts from various institutions including the Spice Board, CSMCRI (Gujarat), Indian Spice Research Institute (Kerala), NIFTEM (Haryana), BARC (Mumbai), CMPAP (Lucknow), DRDO (Assam), ICAR, and National Research Centre on Grapes (Pune).
In response to the findings, the Spice Board has issued guidelines to spice exporters regarding the use of ETO as a fumigant for sterilizing spices, aligning with the standards of importing countries.
