Gaps between production, consumption, and inability of regulatory authorities to check adulteration are big temptation for fraudsters to make easy money through food adulteration, at the cost of nutrition and health of consumers. Milk adulterants include water, skim milk powder, cane sugar (sucrose), starch, fat, ammonium sulfate, etc. Preservatives such as hydrogen peroxide, benzoic acid, salicylic acid, carbonates, bicarbonates, formalin, caustic soda, antibiotics are used to increase shelf life and additives such as urea, vanaspati are also used to make milk look natural. Although sophisticated laboratory techniques are accurate, precise, and reliable, yet they are costly and time consuming. As such there is a requirement for quick screening tests which a common person can perform at the level of household so as to have a broad picture of status of adulteration in his food in case of doubt. Present chapter highlights some quick methods of detection of adulterants at household level.
Gupta, RK; Dudeja, P; Minhas, AS