Quality Standards for

Agri. Commodities
AM 1
Quality Standards
 Adulteration of food stuffs is on the increase.
The Indian consumer, in general is blissfully
ignorant of the harmful hazards caused by
various adulterants, and is mostly guided by
the price, visual appearance and claims made
by the advertisements.

 To safeguard the people from the health

hazards posed by the practice of adulteration, it
is necessary to exercise a strict check and
control over the quality of foods offered for sale
in our different markets
 “Quality“ of foodstuff is defined as character, kind,
property, status grade of goodness and excellence.
 The parameters of the quality are the grades,
standards and specifications laid down by the
government of expert bodies constituted for the
purpose. An established system of quality control
assures uniformity in accepted standards and
thereby ensures that each food stuff is what is
appears to be and what its label claims to be.

 Standardization is a method by which quality

control can be maintained. This is done to maintain
the minimum standard necessary for foodstuffs.
Standard is something that is set up and
established by authority for ensuring quantity,
weight, extent, value of quality.
 Quality standards are descriptions of commodities in terms of net weight, accurate size,
dimensions, content and other characteristics.

SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS LAID DOWN AS QUALITY STANDARDS:

 Establish the minimum and also maximum content of one or more components of food,
e.g. cooking chocolate contains not less than 50% and more than 58% by weight of
cocoa fat.

 Establish the ingredient content of food e.g. jams made of mixtures composed of 45
parts by weight of fruit constituent and 55 part by weight of sugar.

 Establish the minimum quality of one or more ingredients of food, e.g. margarine
contains no less than 80% fat.

 Describe processing requirement e.g., sealed in a container and so processed by heat to

prevent spoiling.

 Identify the species of plant that may have been utilized.

 Define packing media of any foods such as water, syrup, juices and oils.

 Prescribe essentials in production e.g., bread is prepared by baking a kneaded yeast

leavened dough made by moistening flour with water or other specified liquid.

 Require label statement of the use of any food additives with explanation of use.