Bhubaneswar: Beware food adulterators in Odisha! The existing State Food Testing Laboratory (SFTL) here has been upgraded and strengthened by the apex food regulator, Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) under the Central sector scheme.
Under the lab up-gradation scheme, apart from renovation of infrastructure three High End Equipment (HEE) such as ICP-MS (Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometer), LC-MS/MS (Liquid Chromatograph Tandem Mass Spectrometer) and GC-MS/MS (Gas Chromatograph Tandem Mass Spectrometer) have been installed to test and detect adulteration of food and food products.
“Today the State Food Testing Laboratory has been renovated. This is a historic step.ICP, LC, GC will be used for testing food samples. These machines will be very helpful for testing the quality and safety standards of food. Food Inspectors will collect food samples and test them here in this lab and in the event of any adulteration being found law will take its own course. Our State is now equipped to test anything from Coca Cola to Maggi. This is for the first time such machines have come to Odisha,” said Naba Kisore Das, Health and Family Welfare Minister speaking to newsmen after inaugurating the HEE at the SFTL here today.
Notably, ICP-MS is used to detect and estimate food additives and contaminants i.e heavy metals in various kinds of food and water samples such as lead, cadmium, mercury, copper, zinc, arsenic etc.
Similarly, LC-MS/MS is used to detect and estimate food additives and contaminants i.e. pesticide residues (Aldrin, DDT, Carbaryl, Endosulfan etc.), antibiotics (Tetracycline, Oxy Tetracycline, etc), Aflatoxins in various kinds of foods and water samples.
Besides, GC-MS/MS is used for detecting and estimating food additives and contaminants such as pesticide residues and fat profile (mono unsaturated, poly unsaturated, Trans fats), etc in various kinds of foods and water samples.