Beware that your sparkling white sago
may have been chemically bleached.
Officials today seized huge
quantities of various acids allegedly used for whitening by sago units in the
district, a major manufacturing hub of sago products, supplied largely to
northern states.
During a raid on a rice godown at
Vadakku Udayarpalayam, the Food and Safety officials seized 3,000 litres of
concentrated sulphuric acid, about 15,000 litres of bleach liquor and 1,500
litres of phosphoric acid which were stored without licence, District Food
Safety Officer Dr T Anuradha told PTI here.
The owner of the godown told
officials that these were sold to sago units, she said.
The buyers, mainly from North India,
wants only pure white sago products such as vermicelli. Sago factories were
previously using tapioca by scrapping the upper layer and washing it in water.
But now they allegedly cleaned it by
using bleach liquor, concentrated sulphuric acid and phosphoric acid to achieve
pure white colour, she said.
The officials sealed the godown and
further action would be taken, she said.
There are more than 400 sago products
manufacturing units in Salem and neighbouring districts of Namakkal and Erode.
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