Volume 8, Issue 12, December – 2023 International Journal of Innovative Science and Research Technology

ISSN No:-2456-2165

Identification of Adulterants in Food

1
Rajesh K*, 2Panuganti Rajesh
1
Department of Physics, Government Degree College, Sircilla, Telangana, India, 505302
2
Department of Chemistry, Government Degree College, Godavarikhani, Telangana, India, 505209
*Corresponding Author

Abstract:- Food is the key to life. However, due to superior one, e.g., mixing used or spent tea leaves with fresh
commercial aspects, it gets adulterated. To increase their tea leaves, the use of prohibited dyes and preservatives, e.g.,
profit by reducing production costs. They see food as a the colouring of spices; Extraction of valuable ingredients,
commercial good rather than a life-giving substance. So e.g., abstraction of fat from milk or oils from spices. These
they adulterated it. Because of this, humans as well as are some of the basic types of food adulteration mentioned
animals are suffering from many health issues and in the article. A substance is added that decreases its value
environmental damage. So, there is a necessity for or injuriously affects it. Less expensive or inferior
creating awareness in society about food adulteration. substances are substituted wholly or in part. Any valuable
There is scope and necessity to employ scientific methods constituents have been subtracted, either wholly or in part. If
and scientific study in identifying food adulterants. in the it is counterfeiting (imitation). If coloured or otherwise
present study different methods were used for treated, to improve its appearance with stuff injurious to
identifying the adulterants in chilli, milk, sugar, oil. health. No matter what the reason is, if its quality is below
standard. This article also mentions that adulteration in
Keywords:- Turmeric, Adulteration. developing countries like ours is a serious problem because
there are fewer strong regulatory bodies than in the
I. INTRODUCTION developed world. This article also mentions sensory
methods for identifying quality food products. Also
There are so many research papers and books discussed are its drawbacks and uses, and different
published about food adulteration. In that, we went through regulatory bodies like the American Society for Material
some research papers and articles about food adulteration. Testing and the International Standard Organisation using
Food Adulteration and Some Methods of Detection, Review these methods. Physical methods are also used under a
by Misgana Banti (Food Science and Nutrition Researcher, microscope or normally. Observations like morphology,
Ethiopian Institute of Agricultural Research, Jimma bulk testing, texture, or solubility are used in these methods.
Agricultural Research Centre, and Ethiopia), this article The above-mentioned methods are different detection
gives brief information about food adulteration and methods methods. Previously, organoleptic methods were used, but
of detection. now, due to scientific advancement, new methods have been
used.
This article mainly emphasises food adulteration in
Ethiopia that are easily prone to food adulteration, such as According to this article, adulteration has two types.
milk, meat, honey, butter, juices, etc. adulteration of food The first is intentional adulteration, and the second is
known as "injera," which is similar to Indian dosa. They unintentional adulteration. Intentional adulteration can be
found that this food is adulterated by sawdust. These articles done by many methods, but unintentional adulteration is
explain different types of methods, such as physical, only done by improper hygienic practices and industrial
chemical, biochemical, and other techniques. This article waste. Analysis of food adulteration in selected food items
also explained the detection of food adulterants is more purchased from local grocery stores. Here they collected
difficult when both the adulterant and food have items from local grocery stores in the twin cities of
approximately the same physiochemical makeup. This Secunderabad. Here they called different food items and
article also emphasises the word "adulteration," which identified the corresponding adulterants, used specific
doesn’t mean making food poison like most people think but identification methods, identified different adulterants,
means that the food doesn’t meet the federal or state mentioned health hazards that occurred due to these
standard. This article also mentioned real-life scenarios like substances, and found out in what proportions they used to
the one in the People's Republic of China (the Chinese milk have done this adulteration and how many stores were
scandal case with melamine), in which some children were adulterating and how many were not. Finally, this paper
killed and thousands were harmed, which has attracted much gives the whole summary of how grocery shops are
public attention. The reason for this article to be published is adulterating and how people can avoid it.
to have a literature review on food adulteration in the
author's country. This article mentions the history of food Food Adulteration: A Review by Ameeta Sharma,
adulteration from ancient times. These are some methods of Neha Geek Batra, Anjali Garg, and Ankita Saxena This
food adulteration mentioned in the article. Addition of journal is based on a theoretical basis. Here they study some
extraneous matter, e.g., addition of sand to food grains and cases and mention their effects on the human body. Here,
water to milk. Mixing inferior quality material with a they study the nature of adulterants. How it affect the human

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Volume 8, Issue 12, December – 2023 International Journal of Innovative Science and Research Technology
ISSN No:-2456-2165
body and how many times does this kind of adulteration  Chemical reaction:
happen in that situation. Test tube-1:CaCO3+dil.HCl→CaCl2+H2O+CO2 ↑ (Brisk
effervescence)
Food adulteration: its implications and control Test tube-2: without adulterant + dil.HCl → no reaction
approaches in India, by Dr. Sheshikanth Pardeshi This
journal mainly emphasises the health effects of food  Result
adulteration and how we can stop it from spreading. This In the first test tube, we observed that CO2 and brisk
article gives an idea not only about urban and semi-urban effervescence formed while in the second test tube, those
areas but also how rural areas are affected by this food were not formed. So we can conclude that the turmeric
adulteration. This journal also suggests some ideas to the powder is adulterated in the first test tube. While the
government and regulatory bodies on how we can stop this turmeric powder in the second test tube is pure.
food adulteration. It emphasises how additives are different
from adulteration and how if we add more additives, they B. Identification of adulterants in sugar test
act as adulterants. It also mentions mild to severe diseases, Adulterating sugar with sand or grit is a fraudulent
like headaches and cancer. This journal also mentions how practice that is done to increase the weight of the sugar and
the attitude of Indian consumers to buy more goods at lower thereby increase profits for the seller. Sand or grit is cheap
prices motivates the producers to make cheap, quality and readily available materials that can be added to sugar
goods. [1] without changing its appearance, making it difficult to detect
the adulteration without proper testing. Talcum powder,
II. AIMS AND OBJECTIVES washing soda and chalk are used to increase the weight or
volume of sugar and thus, increase profits for the seller.
 Identifying adulterants in food substances like turmeric, They are cheaper than sugar, and adding it to sugar allows
sugar, chilli, milk and oil. the seller to sell more products without incurring additional
 To create awareness about food adulteration in society. costs.
 To ensure food safety.
 To promote fair trade practices. So we made an attempt to find the adulterants with the
 Studying different methods to identify adulterants, from following simple procedure [3].
simple to complex and natural to chemical methods.
 Studying the aftermath effects of food adulteration  Apparatus: Sugar, test tubes, beaker, dil HCl, Spatula,
test tube holder, dropper, gloves.
III. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
 Procedure: Sugar is usually contaminated with washing
A. Identification of adulterants in turmeric powder soda and other insoluble substances.
Adulteration of turmeric with sawdust is often done to
increase the quantity of the product and to decrease the cost  Beaker-1:
of production. Sawdust is low-cost and readily available. It  Take a small amount of sugar in a test tube and shake it
can be done to mask the poor quality of the turmeric with a small amount of water.
powder.  Pure sugar dissolves in water but insoluble impurities do
not dissolve.
Adulteration of turmeric with chalk powder is often  It takes 1.45 s to dissolve completely in water.
done to increase the weight of the product and reduce the
cost of production. It is also low cost material. Low-quality  Beaker-2:
turmeric may have a dull or uneven colour, and the addition The second beaker is to find the adulterant in another
of chalk powder can help to make the colour appear more type of sugar.
uniform. [2]  Pour some sugar into the second beaker and add some
water to it.
So we made an attempt to find the adulterants with the  Leave it for some time.
following simple procedure  We observe that the sugar does not dissolve in water
Apparatus: Two test tubes, water, HCl, spatula, test tube completely. We observe that the particles of sugar have
holder, dropper and gloves. settled down which are undissolved in the bottom of the
beaker.
 Procedure:  From above we can conclude that the sugar present in
 Take one test tube and pour some turmeric powder in it. the 2nd beaker is adulterated.
Add some water to it.  The adulterated sugar in the 2nd beaker took more time
 Take another test tube and pour some turmeric powder in compared to 1st beaker which is about 1 hour.
it. And more water than compared to the first test tube.
 Add some dil HCl in both test tubes.  Result
 Leave them for 10 minutes.  In the first test the sugar is completely dissolved in water
 We observe that CO2 is formed in first test tube and form it takes less time i.e. 1.45 s. So the sugar is pure.
brisk effervescence.
 In the second test tube no CO2 is released.

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Volume 8, Issue 12, December – 2023 International Journal of Innovative Science and Research Technology
ISSN No:-2456-2165
 In the second beaker sugar is not dissolved in water appearance of potato chips, making them look more
completely and took longer time compared to first i.e. visually appealing and increasing their sales. [5]
about 1 hour.
So we can consider it as adulterant sugar. So we made an attempt to find the adulterants with the
following simple procedure
C. Identifications of adulterants in chilli powder
Adulteration of chilli powder with brick powder or saw  Apparatus: Chips and Kurkure, Bunsen burner, watch
dust is a common practice used by some unscrupulous glass, staner, test tube, Holder gas and lighter.
suppliers and manufacturers to increase the weight of the
product and thus increase their profits. Brick powder is  Procedure:
cheaper than chilli powder and has a similar colour and
texture, making it an attractive option for those looking to First, take some different kinds of chips sample;
cut corners.
Kurkure
Adulteration of chili powder with Sudan red, a  First take a sample.
synthetic dye, is another common practice used by some  Then ignite the Bunsen burner.
unscrupulous suppliers and manufactures to enhance the  Hold the sample with Holder.
colour of chili powder and make it appear more vibrant,  Burn it in flame.
fresh, and attractive to consumers. Sudan red is cheaper than
natural red chilli powder and can be easily mixed with it to  Observation: It forms like a sticky substance.
achieve the desired color.
Bingo
Adulteration of chilli powder with starch is another  First take a sample.
common practice used by some unscrupulous suppliers and  Then ignite the Bunsen burner.
manufacturers to increase the weight of the product and thus  Hold the sample with Holder.
increase their profits [4]  Burn it in flame.
So we made an attempt to find the adulterants with the
 Observation: It forms like an ashy substance.
following simple procedure
Apparatus: 2 test tubes, water, chilli powder, spatula, test Plane allu chips
tube holder dropper gloves.
 First take a sample.
Procedure: chill powder after adulterated with red colored
 Then ignite the Bunsen burner.
lead salts in brick powders.
 Hold the sample with Holder.
 Test-1:  Burn it in flame.
 Take a glass of water and add a teaspoon of chilli
powder in to it.  Observation: It forms like an ashy substance.
 Now, take a small quantity of the residue on your palm
and rub it well  Result
The substance which adulterates forms a sticky
 If you feel any grittiness after rubbing, then the chilli
substance and the substance which pure forms an ashy
powder is adulterated with brick powder
substance because pure food material forms with starch.
 In case, the residue feels soapy and smooth then it is Therefore here Kurkure is adulterated but Bingo and aalu
adulterated with soapstone chips are pure.
 Test-2:
E. Identification of adulterants in milk.
 Take one beaker and add water in a fresh beaker. Adding water to milk is a cheap way for suppliers to
 Add a teaspoon of chilli powder into it. increase the volume of their products and make more profit.
 If the sawdust floats at the surface of the water, chilli In some cases, milk suppliers may add water to poor quality
powder will settle down in the bottom. Then it is milk to improve its appearance and taste. This can be done
adulterated with sawdust. to mask the poor quality of the milk and make it appear
fresher.
D. Identification of adulterants in chips test.
 Adding plastic to potato chips can be cheaper than using Adding starch to milk is a cheap way for suppliers to
all-natural ingredients, allowing manufacturers to save increase the volume of their products and make more profit.
money on production costs. Plastic additives can help Increase thickness: Milk is a naturally thin liquid, and some
extend the shelf life of potato chips, preventing them consumers prefer milk with a thicker consistency. Starch can
from going stale too quickly and reducing the amount of be added to milk to increase its thickness and make it appear
waste. Plastic additives can be used to give potato chips creamier and richer.
a desirable texture, such as a crunchy or crispy texture,
which can make them more appealing to consumers.
Some plastic additives can be used to enhance the

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Volume 8, Issue 12, December – 2023 International Journal of Innovative Science and Research Technology
ISSN No:-2456-2165
Urea and formalin are used to increase protein content  Heat both watch glasses with a burner.
in milk and it also acts as preservatives. It also helps to mask  While heating add 2 drops of iodine to the both watch
the quality of milk. glass.
 In the first watch glass milk changes are not observed. In
Synthetic milk can be produced at a lower cost than the second watch glass milk colour is changed to violet.
natural milk. Adulterating natural milk with synthetic milk  So the first watch glass milk is pure and the second
can increase the volume of the milk and allow suppliers to watch glass milk is adulterant.
sell more milk and make more profit. It can reduce the cost
of production, allowing suppliers to sell milk at a lower The milk test process -2:
price. It can be made with preservatives and other additives  Take one test tube and add 20 ml of pure milk.
that can increase its shelf life.  Take another test tube adding 10 ml of milk and 10 ml of
So we attempted to find the adulterants with the following water
simple procedure [6].  Then close test tubes 1 and 2 with the help of caps like
watch glasses
 Apparatus: Milk, test tube, watch glass, test tube, holder,
 Both are mixed for 5 minutes.
spatula, gas, water, iodine, segments.
 The milk in the first test tube remains the same without
any bubbles.
 Procedure:
 Take one watch glass and add milk.  In the second test tube water is separated and bubbles are
formed. So we can conclude that the milk in the second
 Take another watch glass and add milk and some amount
test tube is adulterant, the process shown in Fig.1.
of water.

Fig.1. process of checking milk adulteration

F. Identification of adulterants in oil (cooking oil)  If the cooking oil is pure it will appear light yellowish.
Adulterants in oil can affect the health of consumers  So we can say that it is a pure form of oil/unadulterated
adversely. Mustard oil adulterated with argemone oil and oil.
butter yellow has been reported to cause gallbladder cancer.  If the cooking oil is impure the colour of the oil
Similarly, argemone oil mixed with edible oils can lead to completely changes. It will appear in some other colour.
epidemic dropsy. Glaucoma and loss of eyesight.  The quality of the oil changes completely.
 In this way we can identify the pure and adulterated oils
For this, we don’t need to do any experiments in the the process shown in Fig.2.
lab. It is a simple process.

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Volume 8, Issue 12, December – 2023 International Journal of Innovative Science and Research Technology
ISSN No:-2456-2165

Fig.2. process of checking oil adulteration

By this we should prefer pure oil while buying by REFERENCES

seeing the colors of oil.
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called “unintentional adulteration”. It means even if we
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food. So the slogan of the article is avoid adulteration stay
healthy.

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