Health dept warns people of spurious ghee brands

Jaipur: With ghee demand rising, the health dept has warned consumers that adulterated ghee is increasingly being sold by copying the packaging of trusted brands. Recent enforcement actions have led to the seizure of thousands of liters of suspected spurious ghee, often prepared by mixing vegetable oils and adding artificial fragrance to mimic the smell and colour of pure ghee. Consumers have been advised to stay alert and examine packaging carefully before buying.
A health official said that in Bharatpur district Friday, Saras Dairy (Bharatpur Milk Producer Cooperative Union) jointly uncovered a fake ghee operation. Officials received inputs that counterfeit Saras-branded packaging was being used to sell fake ghee at a mall near Saras Chowraha. To confirm the complaint, the Saras Dairy MD arranged for a known person to purchase ghee packets from the mall. When the packet bought from the mall was compared with an authentic Saras packet, differences in wrapper printing and packaging were found, indicating the product was counterfeit. Seven days ago, in Jodhpur, a fake and adulterated ghee unit was caught at a factory in Nandpuri Yojana, Anganwa (Mandor police station area). The accused allegedly mixed palm oil into cheap ghee, added essence to create a ghee-like aroma and colour, and then pasted labels of branded ghee to sell it at low prices in villages. The accused told food safety officers that he had sourced palm oil cheaply from Jodhpur and ordered low-cost ghee from Uttar Pradesh.