The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has issued a directive to Commissioners of Food Safety across all States and Union Territories, as well as its own Regional Directors, to heighten surveillance on the sale of fresh fruits, particularly mangoes, to curb the use of unauthorized and prohibited artificial ripening agents.
In a letter dated May 16, 2025, the FSSAI emphasized that ensuring food safety and quality is a shared responsibility among all stakeholders, including regulators, food business operators (FBOs), and consumers.
With mangoes now abundantly available in the market, the FSSAI highlighted a heightened risk of some FBOs resorting to illegal and unsafe practices like using Calcium Carbide (Acetylene gas) to accelerate the ripening process and meet consumer demand. The FSSAI explicitly stated that the use of such prohibited chemical agents is illegal and unsafe.
The authority has urged the state and UT food safety commissioners and its regional directors to intensify their efforts in monitoring the fruit markets to detect and prevent the use of these banned substances. The FSSAI has also provided a simple procedure for the qualitative detection of acetylene in godowns or ripening chambers. This test involves exposing filter paper strips dipped in a specific reagent solution to the atmosphere in these areas. A change in the filter paper’s color to red-brown or brown-violet indicates the presence of acetylene gas.
While the test cannot be performed directly on the fruit as no residue is left, its application at the godown level can help authorities identify instances of illegal artificial ripening.
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