960 kg of adulterated ginger garlic paste seized from a factory in Hyderabad

In a major crackdown on food adulteration, the city police in Secunderabad, along with the commissioner's task force, raided a ginger-garlic paste manufacturing unit in Khammam District and confiscated 960 kg of spurious paste worth Rs 1.32 lakh. As per news reports, the task force teams of Telangana’s Commissioner of Food Safety conducted inspections in Khammam District on Monday at the Magic Ginger Garlic Paste Unit in Ricca Bazar.

This raid was carried out on following the directions from Telangana State Food Safety Commissioner RV Karnan, and the Task Force team, headed by zonal assistant food controller V Jyotirmayi. The team comprised of food inspectors P Rohit Reddy, P Swathi, P Manoj Kumar and B Ratan Rao who carried out the inspections.

The reports state that many violations were found at the Magic Ginger and Garlic paste manufacturing plant and the unit not only lacked in FSSAI license and errors in labels, but many major things were missing such as the batch numbers, FSCI logo, repacking, address, and lack of correct details, which are necessary for any packaging unit.

Authorities suspected that the ginger-garlic paste was kept inappropriately close to detergents and other chemicals, such as phenol, leading to cross-contamination and an unpleasant smell in the paste. Similarly, many such raids in the past have identified various fake and adulterated foods which include spices as well as other packaged food.

Though the market-bought ginger-garlic paste is flavourful, but it can be easily prepared at home using equal quantities of ginger and garlic, oil (vegetable or olive, depending on the preference), and just salt, which acts as a preservative.
How to make ginger garlic paste at home
To make ginger-garlic paste at home combine the chopped ginger and garlic in a blender or food processor. Add the oil and blend until you achieve a smooth paste. Transfer the paste into a sterilized, airtight container and refrigerate. For extended shelf life, add a thin layer of oil on top before sealing. This paste can be stored in the refrigerator for 2-3 weeks.

By making ginger-garlic paste at home, you'll know the purity of it and know you're saving your health, not to mention the flavour enriched by such a paste in your dishes.

(THumb image courtesy: Canva)