Food Safety and Standard Authority in India has given directions regarding the operationalization of the Food Safety Standards (Food Product Standards and Food Additives) Amendment Regulation 2016 relating to the limit of iron filings in tea. FSSAI had notified the amendment in May 2016 and after taking into consideration the comments and suggestions of all stakeholders has finalised the limit of iron filings in tea.
FSSAI operationalizes the limits of iron filings in tea
Earlier the FSSAI had fixed the limit to 150mg/kg of tea but the tea traders had asked for an increase to 500mg/kg. Now the FSSAI Scientific Committee has approved the limit of iron filings in tea to 250mg/kg. Tea leaves can become contaminated with iron filings due to processing methods like sieving and crushing. The iron filings are removed with the help of magnet treatment but this method cannot remove all the iron filings so some get left behind. The FSSAI has now finalised the standards for iron filings and has given directions for their operationalization.
The new standards for iron filings, fixed at 250mg/kg of tea have become operational on 1 November 2016. Therefore tea processers and traders will need to follow these standards. All previous standards that were made operational in April 2016 are no longer applicable. The FSSAI has directed enforcement officials in all the states and Union Territories to implement the directive as the final notification and so tea samples will now be tested for the new standards.
Iron in human bodies is considered beneficial as it carries oxygen for haemoglobin. However, excess of iron can cause overloading and lead to diseases like liver cirrhosis, osteoporosis, heart failure and oesophageal cancer. While it is not possible to have zero filing in tea it is possible to limit the iron filings to a level that is safe for human consumption. The FSSAI had also consulted the National Institute of Nutrition (NIN) Hyderabad in this regard.
