Oil mafia gains from ‘loose’ reign in city

Cooking oil is used in the preparation of food in each and every household. In Western India, and more particularly in Mumbai, groundnut oil is the favourite.

Oil is available in the market today in various forms. The middle and upper income groups commonly use ‘packed’ oils, which come in tins, plastic jars or even in tetra-paks. A significant number of people, however, still use loose cooking oil bought at various ‘oil depots’ and kirana stores around the city. This is mainly because of the belief that loose oil is cheaper, available at all times and in quantities that suit the consumer’s pocket.

A recent survey undertaken by the Consumer Guidance Society of India at 15 outlets which sell groundnut oil and at 10 places which sell coconut oil revealed that all 15 specimens of ground nut oil were adulterated and only one out of 10 of the coconut oil samples were adulterated. The standards used to detect and determine adulteration were the standards specified in the Prevention of Food Adulteration Act (PFA). The samples were taken from different parts of Mumbai and Thane and as far away as Bhiwandi and Karjat to give the study a wide range of subjects for study and availability.

The Food and Drugs Administration in Maharashtra is well aware of the widespread adulteration of edible oil and has made several raids on oil shops in recent times to reduce the extent of the adulteration of this commodity. What is disturbing in the new finding is that in spite of the stringent action by the FDA, it appears that the oil mafia continues to have its way in the city.

To a large extent, the fault for this state of affairs lies on the Government. We have been hearing of strict laws to punish those who adulterate food (and some have indeed been enacted and amended), but the rate of prosecution and the time lag for the pronouncement of judicial orders has made a mockery of the entire system. In several cases, the accused goes scot-free either because the defence pricks holes in the prosecution’s methods of seizing and testing goods, or quite often, officers who follow-up a ‘successful mission’ have neither the zeal nor the knowledge to continue with the prosecution of the erring trader. Add to this public apathy, where it is believed that adulteration as a rule is not harmful as long as it does not maim or kill, the adulteration and profiteering continue unabated and unchecked.

The root cause of this situation lies in the very concept of `loose, unbranded selling’. With modern technology and economic progress, the solution to this imbroglio obviously lies in insisting on ready-to-use packaging for all edible oils, even in small quantities. If shampoos and ketchups can be sold in small packages costing a rupee or two, what prevents manufacturers and the government from insisting that edible oil should be sold in packages of small quantities to attend to the needs of the poorer consumer?