Presented By:

Ashna Singhal
Roll No: 03
MSc. 2nd Year
India is the country of festivals, and sweets are the most important part of these celebrations.
At the time of celebration sweets are gifted in India, but these sweet gifts are being turned to
poison due to the addition of colour additives and adulterants, to make it attractive and to
gain more money. Economic point of view is the most important factor responsible for food
adulteration. An adulteration in food is done either for financial gain or due to carelessness
and lack in proper hygienic condition of processing, storing, transportation and marketing.
The added adulterant may cause brain damage, paralysis, some individuals can have allergic
reactions to particular food colours and some are highly carcinogenic. Adulterants when
consumed may cause anaemia, diarrhoea, stomach disorder, giddiness and damages digestive
tract etc.

Bengal has played a pioneering role in the domain of sweets and confectioneries. Different
varieties of sweets, namely, Sandesh, Rosogulla and other milk-based fried sweets are very
popular in this part of the country. Chhenna is the base material for all of these varieties.
With an increased demand for sweets and an incentive of increased profit margin, has led to
its transformation into a sweet poison.

COMMON ADUTERANTS IN INDIAN SWEETS:

 Toxic Milk and Milk Products: The demand for sweets increases during festival season
and there is much shortage of milk in India, which is felt even more during the festive
season when demand for milk and by products such as Khoa and chhenna are required
more which further leads to increased adulteration. Milk based sweets are often found to
be adulterated and contaminated with bloating paper and starch. This toxic substance can
cause liver and kidney failures and much more damage.

 Toxic Industry Dyes in Sweets: Research at the National Institute of Mental Health and
Neuro Sciences, Bangalore, found that chronic exposure to metanil yellow causes
neurotoxicity in rats. A nationwide study has discovered that many of the colourings used
in sweets contain illegal and toxic dyes not for use in food. A team of scientists from
Indian Institute of Toxicology Research, Lucknow, conducted a study on use of illegal
colours in sweets. The team detected illegal and potentially toxic colours in around 16%
of sweets. They also found that even with sweets that contained safe colours, 58%
exceeded the cap of 100 mg/kg determined by the Food Safety and Standards Authority
of India (FSSAI).They also found six banned dyes in the sweets tested: Rhodamine B,
orange II, metanil yellow, malachite green, quinoline yellow and aura mine. All these
dyes are harmful in nature and causes diseases like cancer upon chronic consumption.
 Trans fats Used in Sweets: All Indian sweets are prepared using vanaspati ghee or
partially hydrogenated vegetable oils. These are trans fats and toxic. They cause a wide
range of lifestyle diseases including hypertension, type diabetes, cancer and more.

 Formalin Use as Preservatives In Sweets: Many sweets shops in India use the chemical
Formalin to preserve Indian sweets for long periods of time. Consuming formalin-mixed
sweets can cause damage to kidneys and liver of humans and also cause asthma attacks
and cancer. If pregnant women consume sweets mixed with Formalin there are high
chances that the baby they deliver will be a physically challenged baby.

 Silver Foil in Sweets: Indian sweets are traditionally covered by edible silver foil or
“chandi ka warkh” to make them attractive and beautiful. Tests conducted by the Food
and Drug Administration (FDA), Pune, confirmed that the silver foil used for coating
sweets is increasingly being adulterated with Aluminium. Aluminium is a hazardous
metal when consumed. Aluminium accumulates in body tissues, especially the bones. It
can also enter the brain. During pregnancy it can cause damage to the placenta and foetus.
 DETECTION OF ADULTERANTS PRESENT IN INDIAN SWEETS

Sl. No. Food Item Adulterant Detection Method Remarks

1 Rosogulla Starch Added to:

Increase the quantity
and to maintain SNF
values in synthetic
milk

Health Hazards:
Few drops of Potassium iodide
Can cause diarrhoea
solution is added onto the sweet
due to the effects of
sample.
undigested starch in
Appearance of blue black colour the colon. Its
indicates the presence of starch. accumulation in the
body may prove fatal
for diabetic or pre-
diabetic patients.

2 Kalakand Formalin Added to:

Increase the shelf life
of the milk product for
storage and long
distance transportation

Health Hazards:
Can cause liver and
kidney damage, since
2.5 gms of sweet sample is taken in it is a highly toxic
a test tube and mixed with 5 ml chemical.
distilled water. 0.5 ml of ferric
chloride solution is added and
mixed. Conc. Sulphuric acid is
added drop by drop along the sides
of the test tube.
Formation of a violet colour ring at
the interface of two layers confirms
the presence of Formalin.
3 Rabri Blotting Added to:
Paper Increase the thickness
of the rabri and to cut
down the cooking
time in order to save
fuel.

A teaspoonful of sample is placed Health Hazards:

in a test tube. 3ml of hydrochloric Dental caries,
acid and 3ml of distilled water are Stomach disorders.
added. The contents are stirred with
a glass rod. The rod is removed and
examined.

If fine fibres are seen on the glass

rod it means there is blotting paper
in the sweet sample.

4 Gulab Vanaspati Added to:

Jamun Khoa in order to
decrease the
manufacturing cost
without compromising
on fat content.
3 ml of sample is treated with 10
Health Hazards:
drops of HCl and allowed to stand Elevate cholesterol
for 5 minutes. levels n body,
Can lead to Diabetes
The red colouration indicates the and Coronary heart
presence of Vanaspati/Dalda. ailments.
OBSERVATIONS:

Sl. Food Item Adulterant Observation

No.

1 Rosogulla Starch

Present Present

2 Kalakand Formalin
Absent

3 Rabri Blotting Paper

Present

4 Gulab Jamun Vanaspati

Present
CONCLUSION:
In this present work when Quantitative test was done, mostly all the samples were found to
be adulterated when chemically tested in the lab.

 Gulab Jamun was prepared using vanaspati ghee or partially hydrogenated vegetable oils.
These are trans fats and toxic.
 Rosogullas contained starch and Rabri contained blotting paper, which may be
responsible for several stomach disorders.

Hence, it can be concluded that it is better to make your favourite sweets at home rather
buying sweets from stores. If you buy sweets from outside then it should be ensures that they
do not have silver foil and do not use vanaspati ghee. Also coloured sweets should never be
bought, and wherever possible, sweets should be only bought from brands where one can be
sure that the milk is not adulterated.

References:
1. Mirza, S. K., & Kasim, S. S. Qualitative Analysis of Colour Additives and Adulterants in
Festival Sweets.
2. http://foodsmart.fssai.gov.in/DART.pdf.