 "NGO policing may harm the industry: Assocham")
While the report by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) has caused a panic among the consumers resulting in plummeting of sale of bread and bakery products, the use of potassium bromate (PM), purported to be harmful to health, was being done with the permission and full knowledge of the food regulator, said Assocham in support of bakery industry.
According to the trade body, if India has to scale up its food processing industry, it cannot be left to scare-mongering by NGOs. “The NGOs are free to be watch dogs, but they must realise that their reports and findings should not be targeted only at the industry. While the government is trying to move towards of ease of doing business by relaxing the inspector raj, the NGO policing may harm many times,” it said.
D S Rawat, secretary general, Assocham, commented, “The industry will surely be at fault if it was using the potassium bromate in violation of the FSSAI rules. If at all, there is a problem, it does not lie at the door of the industry, which only would be put to immense loss of consumer confidence and crores of rupees worth of loss. Already, reports suggest a sharp fall in the sale of morning breads and a sense of panic among the homemakers.”
“But an impression has been created as if the entire lot of bread manufacturers are deliberately causing risk to the public health. A similar thing had happened in the case of Maggi noodles which finally returned to the market after an effective court intervention, but not without several hundreds of crores of rupees of loss to the manufacturers,” he said.
Assocham has urged the Health Ministry and the FSSAI to immediately come out with a clarification on the bread controversy. If need be, the association said, the manufacturers should also engage with the regulators and consumers giving them confidence. “Or else, immense loss of goodwill and financial loss would be caused. As it is, the stock prices of the food companies have come under pressure out of panic,” it added.
According to the trade body, if India has to scale up its food processing industry, it cannot be left to scare-mongering by NGOs. “The NGOs are free to be watch dogs, but they must realise that their reports and findings should not be targeted only at the industry. While the government is trying to move towards of ease of doing business by relaxing the inspector raj, the NGO policing may harm many times,” it said.
D S Rawat, secretary general, Assocham, commented, “The industry will surely be at fault if it was using the potassium bromate in violation of the FSSAI rules. If at all, there is a problem, it does not lie at the door of the industry, which only would be put to immense loss of consumer confidence and crores of rupees worth of loss. Already, reports suggest a sharp fall in the sale of morning breads and a sense of panic among the homemakers.”
More From This Section
Rawat said the Assocham is all for adoption of internationally accepted food standards. If at all, the problem is detected, the first contact point for the NGOs and independent organisations should be the government agencies, regulators both at the centre and state levels.
“But an impression has been created as if the entire lot of bread manufacturers are deliberately causing risk to the public health. A similar thing had happened in the case of Maggi noodles which finally returned to the market after an effective court intervention, but not without several hundreds of crores of rupees of loss to the manufacturers,” he said.
Assocham has urged the Health Ministry and the FSSAI to immediately come out with a clarification on the bread controversy. If need be, the association said, the manufacturers should also engage with the regulators and consumers giving them confidence. “Or else, immense loss of goodwill and financial loss would be caused. As it is, the stock prices of the food companies have come under pressure out of panic,” it added.