How to detect adulterants in milk and milk products?

Adulteration of food is a very common practice in India, and it can have a negative impact on your overall health as it degrades the quality of the food product. This article talks about some basic tests that you can carry out at home to check for adulterants in milk and milk products. Adulterated foods are dangerous because they can be toxic and can negatively impact our health.

Milk and milk products are commonly adulterated with water, detergent and starches.

• Test to detect water in milk :

Put one drop of milk on a slanting polished surface and observe. Pure milk will leave a white trail as it flows down, and the adulterated milk will flow without leaving any mark.

• Test to detect detergent in milk :

Take a 10 ml sample of milk with 10 ml of water and shake it thoroughly. If the milk is adulterated it will form a dense lather in comparison to pure milk which forms a very thin layer of foam.

• Test to detect starch in milk products like chhena, khoya, paneer.

Take 2 to 3 ml of sample and boil with 5 ml of water. Let the sample cool down and then add 2 to 3 drops of iodine into it. If the blue colour appears, then it indicates the presence of starch in the sample.

• Test to detect starches in butter or ghee. 

Take a spoon of butter/ghee in a glass bowl and add 2 to 3 drops of iodine. If blue colour appears it indicates the presence of starches like sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, etc.

Adulterants reduce the quality and value of nutrients in the food making it not fit for consumption, therefore be a smart consumer and buy food products from trusted sources. When in doubt you can carry out these simple tests at home to ensure the safety of your food.

Source: FSSAI