by-DR. RAJESH KUMAR SINGH, (LIVESTOCK & POULTRY CONSULTANT), JAMSHEDPUR, JHARKHAND,INDIA 9431309542, rajeshsinghvet@gmail.com

Milk is an excellent source of protein, fat, carbohydrate, minerals, and vitamins. Therefore, it is a popular choice for people of all age groups.

With growing demand, it has been found that milk is being adulterated for economic gain. Due to inadequate monitoring and lack of proper law enforcement, this situation is worse in developing and undeveloped countries, particularly when milk is produced locally and sold directly to individuals. Studies have shown that, occasionally, 100% of liquid milk has been diluted in some way. 

According to the Economic Survey of 2018-19,  India’s milk production is estimated to have increased by 6.6 per cent to 176.35 million tonnes during the last financial year. “Milk production in the country is 165.4 million tonnes during 2016-17 and 176.35 million tonnes (provisional) during 2017-18 . The projected milk production by 2021-22 is 254.5 million tonnes as per the vision 2022 document. India is the largest milk producer in the world. Now, almost 68 percent of this 176 million tonnes was found to have adulterants – ranging from detergent, starch, urea to white paint – whereby water dilution is the least of your worries. With an increasing focus on healthy eating for healthy living, organic and natural foods have become buzz words and are being seen as the panacea for many lifestyle diseases. Hence, the increasing awareness and demand for organic as well as local or desi milk comes as no surprise.

Are you getting your nutrition with a glass full of  Organic or Pure milk? Think again, you might be ruining your body with detergents!

Now a days , most of the urbanite  milk consumers of India are being cheated in the name of organic pure milk by frauds . They keep some dairy cows for eyewash , do malpractices in milk, market their milk n milk products at premium price among elite consumers belonging to city posh area through their attractive marketing channel by using latest IT apps thereby making the elite class, educated people fool and jeopardize  their health.
Adulteration in milk has been a great cause of worry for the everyday consumer and the dairy industry. Spiked with ingredients like detergent, urea, starch, paint and the most common one being water, adulterated milk has hazardous side effects. While the immediate effect of drinking milk adulterated with urea, caustic soda and formalin is gastroenteritis, the long-term effects are far more serious.

According to a report by the Animal Welfare Board, about 68.7 per cent of the milk production in the country, along with milk byproducts were found to be laced with polluting ingredients.

Samples which failed the test, nearly 46 per cent, belonged to the category of low Solid Not Fat (SNF), and this was due to dilution of milk with water. Skimmed milk powder, generally used to increase the volume of milk in the lean season, was present in nearly 548 samples; of these 477 samples contained glucose.

Why are adulterants added to milk—————

It is very hard to find a difference between pure, untouched milk and one that has been spiked. Add to that, there is little to no awareness among consumers. Adulterants like salt, detergents and glucose add to the thickness and viscosity of the milk, while starch prevents curdling of milk. These infiltrators impair the functioning of various organs of the body, causing heart problems, cancer, and in extreme cases, death.

Adulteration cuts production costs and boosts profit margins, but from the health and safety perspective, it plays a deadly game with all those consuming milk with all its toxic properties. Children and elderly fall into the most vulnerable category to be affected by the rising problem.

Paying a high price for cheaper alternatives————

To fill the gap between the huge demand and supply, middlemen regularly add supplements to increase the thickness and viscosity of milk and preserve it for a longer while, forcing the customers to pay a higher price and risking their health. Milk contamination, simply put can cause irreversible damage to the organs, devoiding us of the nutrients it has to offer. According to a recent advisory issued by the World Health Organisation, if adulteration isn’t put to a stop, India’s population would be suffering from serious and fatal diseases like cancer by the end of 2025.

The problem of adulteration is a large handed problem which the consumer alone can’t solve. However, steps can be taken to ensure that the quality of milk we drink everyday is purest in every form and does not take away the nutrition from it. A good way to ensure this is to use packaged milk, one that passes quality checks and remains untouched by a middleman.

There are also adulteration test kits available in the market today. Although a little pricey, these kits are helpful to use. The use of organic milk, which is fresher than the mass produced varieties, is also encouraged as they are not synthetically touched with chemicals or preservatives and is cold pressed for natural goodness.

Now a days the consumers are purchasing milk in the name of organic label ,ranging between Rs 60 and Rs 90 per litre, the brands are milking the organic label. This begs the question – what is organic milk? Dairy products differ as per vegetables and food grains in this sphere. A vegetable, grown from organic seeds – not genetically modified and without the use of chemicals (fertilisers or insecticides) – is labelled as organic produce. However, with milk, the quality of the product can be affected by various external factors beyond the farmer’s control. Hence, even if the cows are not treated with hormones or antibiotics, and fed wholesome feed, the milk may not be up to WHO standards – bacteria levels, aflatoxins, increased somatic cell counts etc. For example, the most common disease is Mastitis with huge costs to the dairy industry. It is a mammary gland infection incurred when immediately after milking, the cow has been allowed to sit or its udders have come in contact with unhygienic areas.

Reuters

Different countries have varying criteria for declaring milk as organic.

Whereas the USFDA mandates that apart from no chemical treatment, cows must also be fed organic fodder, India is silent on this point.

A leading factor is that genetically modified hybrid seeds have flooded the market, capturing the farming scene. A farm producing organic cow feed is a rarity. Hence, the appropriate tag for Indian dairy would be organically-produced milk.

If there is no organic fodder for the cows, one cannot call it organic milk. At the most, it can be called not-tampered milk since no oxytocin is administered. Consumer ——health-conscious urbanites. As more fall victim to lifestyle diseases, most are switching to organic, especially the large vegetarian section of society whose main food items are dairy products – like ghee, butter, cottage-cheese (paneer) other than milk.

When it comes to cow feed, there are those farms where the cows are tied or caged, and those with larger acreage which let their cows roam free. This ensures that the animal grazes on pasture with a variety of feed, rather than being on a restricted diet, thereby ensuring the best quality of milk. This is called loose housing or free range.

When it comes to storage, most packaged milk has hydrogen peroxide added to it as a preservative. In summers, the common phenomenon is reconstituted milk from milk powder. However, any genuine farmer worth his milk will tell you that there are no regular checks or quality control in the market for milk

So, what exactly is organic milk? Any milk that is obtained from cows that are fed with organic fodder grown on chemical-free soil, and that are not injected with antibiotics and hormones, qualifies as organic milk.

This process ensures that the milk these cows give is completely free from any residues of pesticides, fertilisers, adulterants, antibiotics and hormones.

Additionally, to be truly organic, milk should be obtained from one source, say one farm, as one can have complete control over the cows, their health, their feed, the milk production, etc. If the product is collected from various farms, it is highly difficult to maintain a certain level of quality and uniform organic standards.

The key in the production of organic milk is the way the cows are fed and nurtured. Most farms producing organic milk are characterised by the use of technology facilitating the use of automatic milking machines, systems to monitor cow health, bio-digesters, fodder choppers and chilling units. The animals are reared in a clean, stress-free environment and undergo regular veterinary check-ups. The milk is untouched by the human hand and thoroughly chilled, right from the farm until it reaches the customer’s doorstep.

A1 vs A2 milk————

There has been growing interest in A2 milk globally ever since the New Zealand-based A2 Milk Company was founded in 2000 to license intellectual property for determining the type of protein a cow produces in its milk. The company changed its business model in 2007 from licensing to a full-fledged operating company engaged in sourcing and selling branded A2 milk in New Zealand, Australia, the UK and other developed countries; capturing up to 8 per cent share in some of these markets.

While it is generally accepted that organic milk is healthier, there is yet another element that proves to be quite a significant factor.

This is the breed of the cow. A large part of the milk produced in India and by several organic farms is from Jersey and Holstein Friesians (HF) cows, cross-bred with Indian cows. These cows are known to produce more milk than pure Indian humped breeds like the Gir, Ongole, Sahiwal and Tharparkar.

While the former produce A1 milk, the pure Indian breeds produce A2 milk. Traditionally, the milk from humped Indian breeds has always been considered to have medicinal properties.

In India, we are fortunate enough to be blessed with 64 different primary breeds of native cows. Unfortunately, right now, only 32 breeds are alive and the rest are possibly extinct. There are different native cows for different states, which are well-adapted to their home climatic zone. Truly good milk is milk from cows of that region, or at least cows that are well-adapted and allowed to graze freely.

A1 & A2 MILK DIFFERENCE———-

So, what is the difference between A1 and A2 milk? The answer is the type of beta-casein present in the milk.

Milk protein is made up of whey and caseins, of which beta casein is one type of casein found in milk. Beta casein is essentially a chain of 209 amino acids, and while the beta casein structure of A1 milk has histidine which allows the formation of BCM7 during digestion, A2 has proline which does not allow BCM7 formation. The latter is not absorbed well by the human body, and is hence a potential cause for health concerns.

The verdict with regard to the health benefits of A1 vs A2 milk is divided and largely inconclusive.

Some studies reveal that A2 milk is easier to digest and prevents bloating, apart from being good for the immune system and overall brain development in children.

Other researchers opine that as long as the cows are free-range and grass-fed and the milk is fresh, the genetic mutation of the beta casein should not matter.

While A2 milk definitely has health benefits, it really depends on the body type of the individual and what food suits them. Each case is specific.

Analysis formulated to authenticate between organic and conventional milk—–

Researchers have formulated a method using isotopes to differentiate between organic milk, and milk from conventionally farmed cows. In the current climate, food fraud is a substantial issue.

Sometimes, food fraud can be dangerous, such as the recent reports of chilli powder being adulterated with red brick powder, or reports of milk being mixed with detergent, paint and oil and being sold as milk in India. However, a lot of the time it does not pose a health risk to consumers. If an expensive cut of meat is changed for a cheaper version at a restaurant, or if food labelled ‘organic’, isn’t really organic, it won’t affect the health of people. This type of food fraud lies with companies being honest in their advertising.

researchers have used isotope analysis to discriminate between organic and conventional milk. Isotopes are variants of particular chemical element. For example, carbon is present in a number of forms. Carbon-12 is the most common form, and has 6 neutrons. Carbon-13 and carbon-14 also exist, but are less common, with 7 and 8 neutrons respectively.

Despite being chemically identical, chemists are able to tell the difference between isotopes in the laboratory. The main challenge that the scientists faced was determining a unique chemical that would differentiate between organic and conventional milk. 

As isotope ratios do not generally fluctuate, the research team focused on these over levels of individual nutrients, which do change. 

The researchers realised that cows raised using conventional means, or ones fed organic diets would have different isotope ratios in their milk. Despite having a limited sample in their analysis, the researchers found that linoleic acid and myristic acid, two types of fatty acids, had discernibly different isotopic signatures. 

Milk  fraud mitigation strategies ———–

Milk  fraud is a problem that must be tackled by all major stakeholders and consumers under pinned by good investigative techniques, sound methods of detection, sufficient enforcement powers and adequate resources . Vulnerability assessment refers to identification and assessment of vulnerable ingredients and supply chains. There are nine contributing factors for fraud mitigation strategies illustrated as follows:

 1. Supply chain: What is the degree of vertical integration in the supply chain for a particular ingredient, or are purchases made on the open market?

2. Audit strategy: Is there a robust, onsite audit strategy with antifraud measures, or a less mature audit strategy without targeted anti-fraud measures?

3. Supplier relationship: Is the supplier relationship established and trusted?

 4. History of regulatory, quality, or safety issues with a supplier:

5. Susceptibility of quality assurance methods and specifications: Are quality assurance methods and specifications specific and effective for a range of potential adulterants?

6. Testing frequency: Is every lot tested by the buyer, is testing conducted intermittently, or is there reliance only on certificates of analysis?

7. Geopolitical considerations: Is the ingredient sourced from, or does it travel through, a geographic area with political, food safety, or food security concerns?

8. Fraud history: Is there a high volume of known and documented food fraud incidents in the ingredient?

9. Economic anomalies: Are there supply pressures, pricing discrepancies, or other economic factors that may increase the incentive for fraud in the ingredient?

Fighting milk fraud and adulteration remains a race between the criminals committing milk fraud and the scientists developing new methods to uncover food fraud • Frequent analysis and quality control measures are essential to create awareness among the public about malpractices in milk supply chains • Consumers must be aware about the kind of milk he/she consumes • The authorities should realize and practice frequent inspection of the market to check whether milk products meets the minimum legal standards