Edible oil packs to carry vitamin label

As the selling on vitamins fortified packaged edible oil becomes a mandate w.e.f. 1st January 2006, oil-millers have been instructed to sell packaged edible oil with logo displaying it as a vitamins fortified product.

Saurashtra Oil Millers Association (SOMA) and State Government have jointly approved logo Design, as a result SOMA and State Government have appealed the edible oil trade lobby to avail logo pattern for displaying it on their produces.

"We had exclusively designed the logo displaying packaged edible oil as vitamins fortified product and we have approached our members asking them to avail the logo on/before 15th December 2005 as its now mandatory for selling packaged edible oil with logo displayed on it," said Ukabhai Patel, President SOMA.

Till now atleast 70 to 80 oil-millers from Rajkot district have already availed the logo and approximately 130 oil-millers from across Saurashtra-Kutch region have also availed the same logo, as far as Saurashtra-Kutch region is concerned we (SOMA) is going to provide this logo free of charge to the oil-millers registered with us, added Patel.

SOMA president has also written letter to State Government requesting to conduct session with officials of District Civil Supplies Department for educating edible-oil millers across 25 districts of the state, further explaining them packaging act and fortification of vitamins in edible oil, in details.

With joint efforts of SOMA and Rajkot District Collector Mona Khandhar pilot batch project to test the results of edible oil after being fortified with Vitamin A and Vitamin D was carried out at 9 edible oil mills in Rajkot district on 18th October 2005.

Following the results which were positive, it was unanimously decided by the state government and edible oil trade to fortify edible oil with Vitamins, because in India alone people were spending more than Rs.12,000 crores annually on diseases which are born due to deficiency of vitamins in body.

"By 15th December 2005; as SOMA has appealed the trade to avail the logo; as far as Rajkot district is concerned we are sure that with support of SOMA and oil-packers packaged edible oil displaying vitamins fortification logo shall be in markets w.e.f. 1st January 2006; majority of the oil packer have already availed the logo," explained Mona Khandhar.

We are not presently aware as to what instructions are given to the other district collectorates and district civil supplies offices across the state, regarding this matter and so I would not be able to comment regarding developments in other districts in this direction; but as we had taken the lead in this direction "" we have also conducted two workshops educating edible oil trade as to why fortification of vitamins in edible oil is required and why the edible oil should be sold in packaged format, she added.