6/23/2015

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Householdtestswhichcouldbeeasilyatyourhome

QuickTestsforsomeadulterantsinthefood
Nameof
Food
Article

Oilsand
Fats

Milk

Milk

Milk

Adulterant

SimpleMethodfordetectionof
CommonAdulterants

Argemoneoil

Takesomequantityofoilinatest
tube.
Addequalquantityofconcentrated
Nitricacidandshakecarefully.
Redtoreddishbrowncolorinlower
(acid)layerwouldindicatethe
presenceofArgemoneoil

Water

Thepresenceofwatercanbeby
puttingadropofmilkonapolished
slantingsurface.Thedropofpure
milkeitherorflowslowlyleavinga
whitetrailbehindit,whereasmilk
adulteratedwaterwillflow
immediatelywithoutleavinga
mark.

Starch

Addafewdropsoftinctureof
IodineorIodinesolution.
Formationofbluecolourindicates
thepresenceofstarch.

Urea

Takeateaspoonofmilkinatest
tube.Addteaspoonofsoybeanor
arharpowder.Mixupthecontents
thoroughlybyshakingthetesttube.
After5minutes,diparedlitmus
paperinit.Removethepaperafter
aminute.Achangeincolour
fromredtoblueindicatesthe
presenceofureainthemilk.

Remarks

Iodinesolutioniseasily
availableinthemedical
stores.

Take3mlofmilkinatesttube.
Add10dropsofhydrochloricacid.
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Milk

Milk

Milk

Milk

Milk

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Vanaspati

Formalin

Take10mlofmilkinateststube
andadd5mlofconsulphuricacid
fromthesidesofthewallwithout
shaking.Ifavioletorbluering
appearsattheintersectionoftwo
layersthenitshowspresenceof
formalin.

Syntheticmilk

Syntheticmilkhasabitterafter
taste,givesasoapyfeelingon
rubbingbetweenthefingersand
turnsyellowishonheating

Syntheticmilk
testforprotein

Themilkcaneasilybetestedby
Ureasestrips(availableinthe
Medicalstores)becauseSynthetic
milkisdevoidofprotein.

Testfor
Glucose/inverted
sugar

Ghee,
cottage
cheese,
condensed
CoalTarDyes
milk,
khoa,milk
powder
etc,

Sweet
Curd

Mixuponeteaspoonfulofsugar.
After5minutes,examinethe
mixture.Theredcolouration
indicatesthepresenceofvanaspati
inthemilk.

Vanaspati

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Milkdoesnotcontainglucose
/invertsugar,iftestforglucose
withureasestripfoundpositive.It
meansmilkisadulterated.

Formalinenhancesthelifeof
milkandthusisaddedfor
preservationpurpose.

Ifitismadesyntheticallyby
addingwhilecolourwater
paint.Oils,alkali,ureaand
detergentetc.Glucose,
invertedsugarsyrupisadded
inmilktoincreasethe
consistencyandtest.

Add5mlofdil.H2SO4orconc.
HCLtooneteaspoonfullofmelted
sampleinatesttube.Shakewell.
Pinkcolour(incaseofH2SO4)or
crimsoncolour(incaseofHCl)
indicatescoaltardyes.IfHCldoes
notgivecolourdiluteitwithwater
togetthecolour.
Take1teaspoonfullofcurdinatest
tube.Add10dropsofhydrochloric
acid.Mixupthecontentsshaking
thetesttubegently.After5
minutes,examinethemixture.The
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WelcometotheDepartmentofFood&DrugAdministration,UttarPradesh

redcolourationindicatesthe
presenceofvanaspatiinthecurd.

Blottingpaper

Takeateaspoonofrabriinatest
tube.Add3mlofhydrochloricacid
and3mlofdistilledwater.Stirthe
contentwithaglassrod.Remove
therodandexamine.Presenceof
finefibrestotheglassrodwill
indicatethepresenceofblotting
paperinrabri.

Starch

Boilasmallquantityofsample
withsomewater,coolandadda
fewdropsofIodinesolution.
Formationofbluecolourindicates
thepresenceofstarch.

Chhanaor
Starch
Paneer

Boilasmallquantityofsample
withsomewater,coolandadda
fewdropsofIodinesolution.
Formationofbluecolourindicates
thepresenceofstarch.

Rabdi

Khoaand
its
products

Ghee

Ghee

Vanaspathyor
Margarine

Thetestisspecificfor
seasameoilwhichis
compulsorilyaddedto
VanaspatiandMrgarine.
Takeaboutoneteaspoonfullof
Somecoaltarcoloursalso
meltedsampleofGheewithequal giveapositivetest.Ifthetest
quantityofconcentrated
ispositivei.e.redcolour
Hydrochloricacidinastoppered
developsonlybyadding
testtubeandaddtoitapinchof
strongHydrochloricacid
sugar.Shakeforoneminuteandlet (withoutaddingcrystalsof
itforfiveminutes.Appearanceof sugar)thenthesampleis
crimsoncolourinlower(acid)of
adulteratedwithcoaltardye.
VanaspatiorMargarine.
Ifthecrimsonorredcolour
developsafteraddingand
shakingwithsugar,then
aloneVanaspatiorMargarine
ispresent

Mashed
Potatoes,Sweet
Potatoesand

Thepresenceofmashedpotatoes
andsweetpotatoesinasampleof
gheecaneasilybedetectedby
addingafewdropsofIodine,which
isbrownishincolourturnstoblue

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otherstarches.

ifmashedpotatoes/sweet
potatoes/otherstarchesarepresent.

Vanaspatior
Margarine

Thetestisspecificfor
seasameoilwhichis
compulsorilyaddedto
VanaspatiandMrgarine.
Takeaboutoneteaspoonfullof
Somecoaltarcoloursalso
meltedsampleofbutterwithequal giveapositivetest.Ifthetest
quantityofconcentrated
ispositivei.e.redcolour
Hydrochloricacidinastoppered
developsonlybyadding
testtubeandaddtoitapinchof
strongHydrochloricacid
sugar.Shakeforoneminuteandlet (withoutaddingcrystalsof
itforfiveminutes.Appearanceof sugar)thenthesampleis
crimsoncolourinlower(acid)of
adulteratedwithcoaltardye.
VanaspatiorMargarine.
Ifthecrimsonorredcolour
developsafteraddingand
shakingwithsugar,then
aloneVanaspatiorMargarine
ispresent

Prohibited
colour

Take20dropsoftheedibleoilin
eachofthefourtesttubes.Make3
differentsolutions,mixingup1part
ofdistilledwater,3partsof
distilledwaterand4partsof
distilledwater.Add2mlofeach
solutionineachofthetesttubes
andadd2mlofhydrochloricacid
inthemixtureofanytube,indicates
thepresenceofprohibitedcolourin
theedibleoil..

Coconut
oil

Anyotheroil

Placeasmallbottleofoilin
refrigerator.Coconutoilsolidifies
leavingtheadulterantasaSeparate
layer.

Whole
spices

Dirt,dust,straw,
insect,damaged
seeds,other
seeds,rodent
hairandexcrete

Thesecanbeexaminedvisually

Papayaseeds

Papayaseedscanbeseparatedout
frompepperastheyareshrunken,
ovalinshapeandgreenishbrownor
brownishblackincolour.

Butter

Edibleoil

Black
pepper

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Black
pepper

Lightblack
pepper

Floatthesampleofblackpepperin
alcohol(rectifiedspirit).Theblack
pepperberriessinkwhilethe
papayaseedsandlightblackpepper
float.

Black
pepper

Coatedwith
mineraloil

Blackpeppercoatedwithmineral
oilgivesKerosenelikesmell.

Cloves

Volatileoil
extracted
(exhausted
cloves)

Exhaustedclovescanbeidentified
byitssmallsizeandshrunken
appearance.Thecharacteristic
pungentofgenuineclovesisless
pronouncedinexhaustedcloves.

Argemoneseed

Mustardseedshaveasmooth
surfaceTheargemoneseedhave
grainyandroughsurfaceandare
blackandhencecanbeseparated
Usemagnifyingglassfor
outbycloseexamination.When
identification
Mustardseedispressedinsideitis
yellowwhileforArgemoneseedit
iswhite

Mustard
seed

Powdered
Addedstarch
spices

Addafewdropsoftinctureof
Iodinetestforaddedstarchis
IodineorIodinesolution.Indication
notapplicableforturmeric
ofbluecolourshowsthepresence
powder.
ofstarch.

Turmeric
powder

Takeateaspoonfullofturmeric
powderinatesttube.Addafew
dropsofconcentratedHydrochloric
acid.Instantappearanceofpink
colourwhichdisappearsondilution ThistestisonlyforMetanil
withwatershowsthepresenceof
yellow.
turmericIfthecolourpersists,
metanilyellow(anartificialcolour)
anowpermittedcoaltarcolouris
present.

Colouredsaw
dust

Takeasmallquantityofturmeric
powderinatesttubecontaining
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Turmeric
powder

Chillies
powder

Chillies
powder

Chillies
powder

WelcometotheDepartmentofFood&DrugAdministration,UttarPradesh

Chalkpowderor
yellowsoap
stonepowder

smallquantityofwater.Addafew
dropsofconcentratedHydrochloric
acid,effervescence(giveoff
bubbles)willindicatethepresence
ofchalkoryellowsoapstone
powder.

Brickpowder,
saltpowderor
talc,powder

Takeateaspoonfullofchillies
powderinaglassofwater.
Colouredwaterextractwillshow
thepresenceofartificialcolour.
Anygrittinessthatmaybefelton
rubbingthesedimentatthebottom
ofglassconfirmsthepresenceof
brickpowder/sand,soapyand
smoothtouchofthewhiteresidue Thistestisonlyforearthy
atthebottomindicatesthepresence material
ofsoapstone.Toalittlepowderof
chilliaddsmallamountofconc
HClandmixtotheconsistencyof
paste,diptherearendofthematch
stickintothepasteandholdover
theflame,brickredflamecolour
duetothepresenceofcalciumslats
inbrickpowder.

Artificialcolours

Sprinklethechillipowderona
glassofwater.Artificialcolorants
descendascolouredstreaks.

Watersoluble
coaltarcolour

Watersolubleartificialcolourcan
bedetectedbysprinklingasmall
quantityofchilliesorturmeric
powderonthesurfaceofwater
containedinaglasstumbler.The
watersolublecolourwill
immediatelystartdescendingin
colourstreaks

Soapstoneor
Asafoetida
otherearthy
(Hing)
material

Asafoetida
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Incompoundedasafoetida
Shakelittleportionofthesample
duetopresenceofstarch,a
withwaterandallowtosettle.Soap
slightturbidsolutionmaybe
stoneorotherearthymailerwill
produced.However,thiswill
settledownatthebottom.
settledownafterkeeping
Addtinctureofiodine,appearance

Compoundofasafoetida
containsstarchwhichis
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(Hing)

WelcometotheDepartmentofFood&DrugAdministration,UttarPradesh

Starch

Asafoetida
Foreignresin
(Hing)

Spices

Powderedbran
andsawdust

Cinnamon Cassiabark

Cumin
seeds

Grassseeds
colouredwith
charcoaldust

Green
chilliand
Malachitegreen
green
vegetables.

Greenpeas

Artificially
coloured

Driedtendrilsof
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ofbluecolourshowsthepresence
ofstarch.

declaredonthelabel.This
testisnotapplicablefor
compoundasafoetida.

Burnonaspoon,ifthesample
Purehingburnslikearomatic
burnslikecamphor,itindicatesthe
camphor
sampleispure.
Sprinkleonwatersurface.
Powderedbranandsawdustfloat
onthesurface.
Cinnamonbarksareverythinand
canberolled.Itcanberolled
aroundapencilorpen.Ithasa
distinctsmell.Whereascassiaark
compriseofseverallayersin
betweentheroughouterandinner
mostsmoothlayers.On
examinationofthearkloosely,a
cleardistinctioncanbemade.
Rubthecuminseedsonpalms.If
palmsturnblackadulterationis
indicated.
Takeacottonpiecesoakedinliquid
paraffinandrubtheoutergreen
surfaceofasmallpartofgreen
vegetable.Ifthecottonturns,green,
wecansaythevegetableis
adulteratedwithmalachitegreen.
Takealittleamountofgreenpeas
ina250mlbeakeraddwatertoit
andmixwell.Letitstandforhalf
anhour.Clearseparationofcolour
inwaterindicatesadulteration.
Genuinesaffronwillnotbreak
easilylikeartificial.Artificial
saffronispreparedbysoaking
maizecobinsugarandcolouringit
withcoaltarcolour.Thecolour
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Saffron

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maizecob

dissolvesinwaterifartificially
coloured.Abitofpuresaffron
whenallowedtodissolvedinwater
willcontinuetogiveitssaffron
coloursolongasitlasts.

Clickheretoknowtheprocedureforfindingoutadulteratedmilk

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