“Sometimes I catch a whiff of some chemical odour in the milk and I wonder if something dangerous has been added to it,” said Azra Ahmed, 30, as she boiled milk to kill off any germs. “My two children, including the youngest who is just a year old, consume the milk and I worry whether it is safe for them.”
Newspaper reports have suggested that up to 80 percent of the milk sold in Lahore, capital of Punjab Province, may be contaminated. The Lahore High Court (LHC) has appointed a commission to investigate packaged milk, as well as milk sold by traditional sellers (‘gowalas’), who carry it to homes in metal urns slung onto their bicycles.
Milk supplied by the latter costs Rs 40-50 (50-64 US cents) a litre and is more widely consumed; milk in packs usually costs around Rs 60 (76 US cents).
The petitioner in the case, Muhammad Yaqoob Bhatti, has told the court that an “alarming situation” has arisen.
Meanwhile, District Food Officer Masood Ashraf has rejected the milk adulteration allegations in the media, and the provincial government has said this is a matter for the City District Government of Lahore (CDGL).
Bhatti said, according to available data, of the 19,718 samples of milk collected by the CDGL food department in the last five years, about 17,529 samples were found to be adulterated.
He said the substances added to the milk included urea (a fertilizer) or melamine in 30 percent of the samples; sub-standard cooking oil (70 percent); powdered chestnuts (40 percent); unhygienic water (50 percent); formalin, a chemical used to preserve human body (35 percent); penicillin for enhancing the thickness and fragrance of milk (47 percent); hair-removing powder (29 percent); and zoonotic pathogens (27 percent).
Experts say additives like urea are intended to lend milk uniformity of appearance. Melamine, a nitrogen-rich compound, tricks testers into concluding that food products containing it are high in protein.
In 2008, melamine, a chemical substance, was found in powdered infant milk and other milk products sold in China, leading to the deaths of six infants due to kidney-related complications and the hospitalisation of 51,900 others, according to the World Health Organization.
“Melamine is a toxin. The idea of it being added to milk is terrifying, especially as children are frequent consumers of milk,” Eesha Gul, a paediatrician, said.
kh/ar/cb
Newspaper reports have suggested that up to 80 percent of the milk sold in Lahore, capital of Punjab Province, may be contaminated. The Lahore High Court (LHC) has appointed a commission to investigate packaged milk, as well as milk sold by traditional sellers (‘gowalas’), who carry it to homes in metal urns slung onto their bicycles.
Milk supplied by the latter costs Rs 40-50 (50-64 US cents) a litre and is more widely consumed; milk in packs usually costs around Rs 60 (76 US cents).
The petitioner in the case, Muhammad Yaqoob Bhatti, has told the court that an “alarming situation” has arisen.
Meanwhile, District Food Officer Masood Ashraf has rejected the milk adulteration allegations in the media, and the provincial government has said this is a matter for the City District Government of Lahore (CDGL).
Photo: Kamila Hyat/IRIN  |
| A traditional seller (‘gowala’) measures out milk. But is it safe to drink? |
He said the substances added to the milk included urea (a fertilizer) or melamine in 30 percent of the samples; sub-standard cooking oil (70 percent); powdered chestnuts (40 percent); unhygienic water (50 percent); formalin, a chemical used to preserve human body (35 percent); penicillin for enhancing the thickness and fragrance of milk (47 percent); hair-removing powder (29 percent); and zoonotic pathogens (27 percent).
Experts say additives like urea are intended to lend milk uniformity of appearance. Melamine, a nitrogen-rich compound, tricks testers into concluding that food products containing it are high in protein.
In 2008, melamine, a chemical substance, was found in powdered infant milk and other milk products sold in China, leading to the deaths of six infants due to kidney-related complications and the hospitalisation of 51,900 others, according to the World Health Organization.
“Melamine is a toxin. The idea of it being added to milk is terrifying, especially as children are frequent consumers of milk,” Eesha Gul, a paediatrician, said.
kh/ar/cb
This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions
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