Kerala - Thiruvananthapuram   

Quality tests on milk brands

Thiruvananthapuram: The Centre of Indian Consumer Protection and Research (COINPAR), which tested several brands of milk sold in the city, says most of them, including Milma, do not conform to the standards specified in the label information.

The milk brands were tested in the Government Analytical Laboratory. The quality test conducted was IS 1479, as specified in the Prevention of Food Adulteration Act. The milk brands tested included Milma’s Standardised, Rich and Double Toned, Ksheera, Kannan, Heritage, Star and Matha. The milk sold by cycle vendors was also tested.

According to a COINPAR press release, though most brands did not conform to the standards, no brand was found to have additives, such as sugar, starch or formalin, which are injurious to health.

The standard fixed for cow’s milk is 3.5 per cent fat and 8.5 per cent SNF (solids-not-fat), while for buffalo milk, this is 4.5 per cent fat and 8.5 per cent SNF. COINPAR claimed that none of the brands tested conformed to this standard.

The milk sold by cycle vendors was found to contain 2.9 per cent fat and 4.5 per cent SNF. Milma’s Rich brand had 3.6 per cent fat and 8.9 per cent SNF. Milma Standard had 3.3 per cent fat and 8.6 per cent SNF, against the label information of 3 per cent fat and 8.5 per cent SNF. Milma’s double-toned milk, which the label says has only 1.5 per cent fat, was found to have 1.7 per cent fat and 9 per cent SNF. The brand Heritage had 3 per cent fat and 9 per cent SNF, which conformed to the label information.

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