Food Adulteration Cases in MP | 25 Aug 2025

Why in News? 

State Minister of Health and Family Welfare, Pratap Rao Jadhav, replied in the Rajya Sabha that, on average, seven food adulteration cases are reported daily in Madhya Pradesh, placing the state third in India, after Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan, for food safety violations. 

Key Points 

  • Penalties Under FSS Act: In the financial year 2024-25, 2,597 cases were penalized under the Food Safety and Standards (FSS) Act, 2006, out of a total of 13,920 food samples tested.  
    • This reflects an increase of 659 cases compared to 2023-24, when 1,938 penalties were imposed on 13,842 samples. 
  • Trend Analysis: Over the past five years, Madhya Pradesh has seen the highest number of penalties imposed for food adulteration among all states, following Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan. 

Food Adulteration 

  • About: As per Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), food adulteration refers to the intentional addition, substitution, or removal of substances that negatively impact the nature, quality, or safety of food.   
    • It also includes unintentional contamination that may occur during cultivation, harvesting, storage, processing, transportation, or distribution.  
  • Causes of Food Adulteration in India: 
    • Weak enforcement and fragmented food supply chains (80% in informal markets). 
    • Lack of unified national policy and divergence from global safety standards. 
    • Resource constraints in processing industries, reuse of frying oil, poor hygiene. 
    • Pesticide residues and substandard fortification practices; misleading labeling. 
  • Legal & Policy Framework: 
    • FSSA, 2006 & FSSAI – regulates production, import, sale, and standards. 
    • Packaging & Labelling Regulations, 2011 – ingredient, allergen, expiry disclosure. 
    • Consumer Protection Act, 2019 – right to compensation for adulterated food. 
  • Recommended Measures: 
    • Formalize the food processing sector (e.g., PM FME Scheme). 
    • Align regulations with global standards; amend FSSA. 
    • Increase skilled workforce; promote industry–academia collaboration. 
    • Strengthen surveillance, penalties, mobile labs, and supply chain management. 
    • Adopt One Health Approach for upstream/downstream contamination control.