The term food adulteration refers to adding a substance that usually does not contributes for better quality of the food, but rather for the quantity and the large sale of that product. Food adulteration has been known to the people since the time of the ancient Greeks and Romans. They were adding colour to the wine in order to improve the taste and the colour. Since those times food adulteration is a constantly and continuously used process throughout the centuries on a different level. Thanks to chemist Frederick Accum and medic Arthur Hill Hassall and their pioneering work that started in the 19th century, the food that we are consuming today must go through quality control. All the food that we are buying today by law must state the content and the ingredients on the packaging.
Food adulteration or contamination of food and drinks is very common source for many infections. The most common are typhoid fever, dysentery, cholera and a large variety of worm infestations. Food preservatives very often are the cause of food adulteration. Salt is also a preservative but it is natural and it’s not stated as a food adulterant. Preservatives like Salicylic, boric acid, formaldehyde, sulphurous are the major preservatives that are causes for food adulteration. Many of these are taken as harmless but some of them if taken for a long period can be highly dangerous.
Colours are also very often the cause for food adulteration. The butter is coloured with anatta to appear more yellow, turmeric is used for cereals and mustard, copper salts are very much used to make canned vegetable and pickles greener. In the candies and the confectionery industry many dangerous colours are used that cause food adulteration.
For milk adulteration is used water which might introduce germs for different disease. For chilly powder products brick powder is used that cause’s food adulteration. Many dyes are injected in watermelons, peas, aubergines, capsicum. The list of product that were coloured with colours and are the cause for many cases of food adulteration is almost endless.
People are advised to buy food and drink with high caution and care. Especially in places where the hygiene and sanitary conditions are poor, it is highly advisable not to eat raw vegetable, meat and fish. In these places only freshly cooked and warm food is advisable for consumption. Beverages must be boiled, water that was purified by using water filters or tablets before drinking.
There are many cases where big brands from famous company were caught in casing food adulteration in order to preserve their product better and enlarge the sales. For our own good and health we have to make good decisions and buy products only from proven brands and suppliers and use more home cooked and home grown food.
