Question

As per the latest Food Safety and Standards (Food Product Standards and Food Additives) Regulations, 2011, effective from the First July, 2022, which of the following new standards have been added to ghee?
(A) ISO Triglyceride Analysis, Fatty acid composition, Presence of \(\beta\)-sitosterol and Iodine value
(B) Presence of \(\beta\)-sitosterol, Iodine value, Polenske value and Saponification value
(C) ISO Triglyceride Analysis, Fatty acid composition, Polenske value, Saponification value
(D) Presence of \(\beta\)-sitosterol, Iodine value, ISO Triglyceride Analysis, Fatty acid composition
Choose the correct answer from the options given below:

• (A) and (C) only.
• (B) only.
• (C) only.
• (C) and (D) only.

Hint:

The 2022 FSSAI updates to ghee standards focus on three modern analytical methods:
1. Fatty Acid Composition (FAC) by chromatography.
2. ISO Triglyceride Analysis by Gas Chromatography.
3. Detection of \(\beta\)-sitosterol to identify plant sterols.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is D

Step 1: Understanding the Concept:
Ghee is vulnerable to adulteration with cheaper fats, such as hydrogenated vegetable oils (vanaspati), animal body fats, and refined vegetable oils.
To detect modern adulteration methods, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) regularly updates its standards and analytical protocols.

Step 2: Detailed Explanation:
The classical parameters for verifying ghee purity (such as Reichert-Meissl value, Polenske value, and Saponification value) can sometimes be bypassed by skilled adulteration.
To address this, FSSAI introduced updated standards for ghee, which became effective on July 1, 2022.
These amendments added modern analytical methods to detect adulteration:
1. ISO Triglyceride Analysis by Gas Chromatography:
This method analyzes the unique triglyceride profile of milk fat.
It can detect the addition of foreign animal fats or vegetable oils by identifying abnormal triglyceride peaks.
2. Fatty Acid Composition (FAC):
Using gas-liquid chromatography (GLC) to verify the complete fatty acid profile of ghee, ensuring it matches the natural ratios of butyric, palmitic, oleic, and other key fatty acids.
3. Presence of \(\beta\)-sitosterol:
A phytosterol test used to detect the addition of even small amounts of vegetable oil.
4. Iodine Value:
Used to measure the unsaturation of the fat, helping to detect the addition of highly unsaturated vegetable oils or highly saturated animal body fats.
Under the updated regulations, these parameters are combined to form a robust diagnostic standard.
Analyzing the options, statements (C) and (D) include these updated criteria, with (D) representing the complete set of newly mandated purity tests.

Step 3: Final Answer:
The correct option is (D), representing (C) and (D) only.