ADULTERANTS IN FOODS

AND ITS DETECTION

METHODS

ADULTERANT & ADULTERATED

ADULTERANT means any material which is or could be
employed for the purpose of adulteration
ADULTERATED- an article of food shall be deemed to be
adulterated if any one or more of the following had happened
I. If the article sold by a vendor is not of the nature, substance
or quality demanded by the purchaser is to his prejudice, or is
not of the nature, substance or quality which it purports or
represented to be.
II.If the article contains any other substance which affects, or if
the article is so processed as to affect, injuriously the nature,
substance or quality thereof.

Contd
I.

If any inferior or cheaper substance has been substituted wholly

or in part for the article so as to affect injuriously the nature,
substance or quality thereof.
II. If any constituent of the article has been wholly or in part
abstracted so as to affect injuriously the nature, substance or
quality thereof
III. If the article had been prepared, packed or kept under insanitary
conditions whereby it has become contaminated or injurious to
health
IV. If the article consists wholly or in part of any filthy, putrid,
rotten, decomposed or diseased animal or vegetable substance or
is insect-infested or is otherwise unfit for human consumption.

TYPES OF ADULTERATION

PRESERVATIVE
When added to food, Capable of inhibiting
Retarding or arresting the process of,
# Fermentation
# Acidification
# Other decomposition of food

PRESERVATIVE CLASSIFICATION

QUICK TEST FOR SOME ADULTERANTS IN

FOOD

Food Article

Adulterant

Simple Method for Detecting the

Adulterant
Put a drop of milk on polished vertical surface.

Milk

Water

The drop of pure milk either stops or flows

slowly leaving a white trail behind it. Whereas

Urea

milk adulterated with water will flow

immediately without leaving a mark.
Take 5 ml of milk in a test tube and add 2 drops
of bromothymol blue soln. Development of blue
colour after 10 minutes indicates presence of
urea.

Argemone seeds have rough surface and

Mustard Seeds

Argemone Seeds

mustard seeds on pressing is yellow inside while

argemone seed is white.

Put some lemon juice, bubbles are observed on

Ice Cream

Washing Powder

the presence of washing powder

Food Article

Adulterant

Sugar

Chalk

Simple Method for Detecting the

Adulterant
Dissolve sugar in a glass of water, chalk will
settle down at the bottom, similarly for salt

On ignition genuine silver foil burns away

Silver Foil

Aluminium Foil

completely leaving glistening white spherical

ball of the same mass while aluminum foil is
reduced to ashes of black Grey colour.
A cotton wick dipped in pure honey burns

Honey

Water

when ignited with a match stick. If

adulterated presence of water will not allow
the honey to burn, if it does will produce a
cracking sound.
Gently sprinkle the coffee powder on surface
of water in a glass. The coffee floats over

Coffee

Chicory

the water but chicory begins to sink down

within few seconds. The falling chicory
powder particles leave behind them a trail of
colour, due to large amount of caramel they
contain

Food Article

Tea

Adulterant

Adulterant

Coloured leaves

Rub leaves on white paper, artificial colour

comes out on paper.

Used tea

Tea leaves sprinkled on wet filter paper. Pink

Iron fillings

Red Chilli Powder

Simple Method for Detecting the

Brick Powder

or red spots on paper show colour

Move a magnet through the sample. Iron will
stick to the magnet.

Brick powder

settles fast chilli powder

settles slowly when put in water.

Add a few drops of HCl to the extract of

Turmeric Powder

Metanil Yellow

turmeric from water. Instant appearance of

violet, when the colour persists when diluted
with water indicates the presence of metanil
yellow.

Food Article

Adulterant

Simple Method for Detecting the

Adulterant
Extract the colour with Luke warm water

Dal arhar, moong, washed channa

Metanil Yellow

from the sample of pulses, add drops of HCl.

A pink colour indicates presence of metanil
yellow.
Take a small part of the sample and place it

Green vegetables like chilli

Malachite green

over a moistened white blotting paper, the

impression of the colour on paper indicates
the presence of malachite green
Take one teaspoonful of melted ghee or
butter with equal quantity of Conc.

Pure Ghee or Butter

Vanaspathi

Hydrochloric acid in a test tube and add to it

a pinch of cane sugar. Shake well for one
minute and let it stand for five minutes.
Appearance of crimson colour in lower layer
shows the presence of vanaspathi.

Black Pepper

Papaya Seeds

Float the sample in alcohol. The mature black

pepper berries sink while papaya seeds and
light black pepper float.

Simple Method for Detecting the

Food Article

Adulterant

Adulterant

Shake a little portion of sample with water

Hing (ASAFOETIAD)

Soap Stone or earthy matter

and allow to settle. Soap stone or earthy

matter will settle down at the bottom.

Pure saffron will not break easily like

Saffron

Coloured dried tendrils of maize cob

artificial. Pure saffron when allowed to

dissolved in water will continue to give its
colour so long as it lasts.

Stir a spoonful of sample salt in water. Chalk

Common Salt

White powdered stone

will make the solution white and other

insoluble impurities will settle down