Food fraud report reveals rise in manufacturers' cost-cutting measures

US organisation tracks increasing reports of watered milk, diluted olive oil and other dangerous substitutes in the food chainSome fine wines are complimented for their grassy aroma, but if your cup of tea has that earthy, sweet scent it might be because the tea manufacturer put lawn cuttings in it.The practice is known as food fraud, and it is used as a cost-cutting measure by food manufacturers. US Pharmacopeial Convention (USP), an independent science non-profit, announced Wednesday that its updated database showed incidences of food fraud increasing dramatically in 2011 and 2012.This means the instances of food manufacturers doing things such as adding lawn grass and fern leaves to tea is much greater than originally thought.The database's creator and lead analyst, Dr Jeffrey Moore explained that the database was crafted to help food manufacturers, regulators and others improve the safety of the food supply."While food fraud has been around for centuries, with a handful of notorious cases well documented, we suspect that what we know about the topic is just the tip of the iceberg," said Moore.The database is made up of 1,300 scholarly and news reports of food fraud spanning the 30-year period between 1980 and 2010. But the updated database records 800 new examples of food fraud published in 2011 and 2012.USP's findings show that milk, olive oil and spices continue to have a high vulnerability to food fraud, with dilution the most common cause of problems. Indian authoriti...
Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - Category: Science Authors: Tags: Food & drink industry United States World news guardian.co.uk Food safety China Life and style Agriculture Source Type: news