Chemistry Project Report on Food Adulteration

Project Report FOOD ADULTERATION : INTRODUCTION

Food Adulteration : In our daily life there are so many unhygienic and
contaminated things for our health. Most of our things our contaminated. Even the
food, which we eat, is adulterated. Now a question arises that what is adulteration?
The answer is that the deliberate contamination of food material with low quality,
cheap and non-edible or toxic substances is called food adulteration. The
substance, which lowers or degrades the quality of food material, is called an
adulterant. Adulteration brings a lot of easy money for the traders, but it may spoil
many lives. Food adulteration can lead to slow poisoning and various kinds of
diseases, which can even result in death. Adulteration makes the food items
used in our daily life unsafe and unhygienic for use. An easy example of food
adulteration is vanaspati ghee in desi ghee. The traders use it for their economic
benefit without thinking about its effect on the common population of our country,
which consumes it. For preventing it our government has made some certain
commissions and laws. Still it prevails in our country on large scale.
Project Report Adulteration in Food Items : Adulteration should be checked
properly in common food items so as to save people from its bad effects.
Adulteration is the government and we for the common people therefore something
should do a type of curse against it.
Types of Food Adulteration
In India, the most common type of food adulterations is of
following types:
1. Milk :- It is adulterated by the addition of water, starch, skim milk powder
and removal of cream.
2. Ghee :- It is adulterated with vanaspati and animal fats such as pig's fat. In order
to improve the flavor of adulterated ghee tributyrin is added.
3. Cereals :- Rice and wheat are mixed with stones sand grit and mud to increase
the bulk.
4. Flour :- Wheat flour is mixed with soapstone and Bengal gram flour is
adulterated with Kesari dal or lathyrus flour.
5. Pulses :- They are adulterated with Kesari Dal stones are added to pulses such
as mott urad, and masoor. Toxic chemical such as metanil yellow are added to old
stocks of pulses to improve their colour appearance.
6. Edible Oil :- They are mixed with cheaper oil, toxic oil (e.g. argemone oil) and
mineral oil.
7. Honey :- It is adulterated with sugar and jaggery.
Material required
1. Glass Wares :
• Test Tube, Beaker, Slides
2. Food Samples.
• Ghee, Milk, Oil, Pulses samples.
3. Chemical Required
• Conc. HCl., Conc. Nitric Acid.
4. Test Tube stand.
Procedure for detection the Adulteration in the food Items
Adulteration in the food material can be detected in the following
ways.
1. Vanaspti in Ghee :- Took one tea spoon full of liquid ghee. Added equal
quantity of conc. HCl shook this mixture in a test tube. Now added a pinch of
common sugar. Shook it well for about one minute and then allowed it to stand for
5 minute and observed the result.
2. Water in milk sample:- Put a drop of sample milk on a plain slide. Tittled the
slide and observed the result.
3. Agremone oil in edible oil :- Took some amount of edible oil in a test tube.
Poured 3-4 drops of conc nitric acid. Shook it well and observed the result.
4. Metanil yellow in Dal :- Took 5 gms of sample. Add 5ml of water and a few
drops of dil. HCl and observed the result.
Observation
Table-A:- Detection of vanaspati in ghee
Sr.No. Sample Procedure Observation
1. Ghee A Sample+Conc. +++
HCl + Sugar Crimson colour in
lower layer of the
mixture
2. Ghee B -do- ++
3. Ghee C -do- -
Table-B:- Detection of water in Milk
Sr.No. Sample Procedure Observation
1. Milk A Sample on a +
plain slide +
titled the slide
2. Milk B -do- ++
3. Milk C -do- +++
Table-C:- Detection of metanil yellow in dal
Sr.No. Sample Procedure Observation
1. Pulse A 5gm of sample +++
5ml of water + Pink colour
Conc. HCl appearance
2. Pulse B -do- -
3. Pulse C -do- -
Table-D:- detection of Argemone oil in edible oil
Sr.No. Sample Procedure Observation
1. Edible Oil A 5 ml Sample ++++
3 drops of Reddish Brown
conc. HNO3 colour
2. Edible Oil B -do- ++
3. Edible Oil C -do- +

Conclusions
Project Report Food Adulteration : Table A [Detection of Vanaspati in Ghee]
Ghee A : It gives most positive test, hence is most adulterated.
Ghee B : It gives more positive test, hence is more adulterated.
Ghee C : It gives negative test, hence is not adulterated.
Project Report Food Adulteration : In Table B [Detection of Water in Milk]
Milk A : It gives positive test to small extant hence is least adulterated.
Milk B : It gives more positive test, hence is more adulterated.
Milk C : It gives most positive test, hence is most adulterated.
Project Report Food Adulteration : In Table C [Detection of Metanil Yellow in
Dal]
Pulse A : It gives positive test, hence is adulterated.
Pulse B : It gives most negative test, hence is not adulterated.
Pulse C : It gives more negative test, hence is not adulterated.
Project Report Food Adulteration : In Table D [Detection of Argemone Oil in
Edible Oil]
Edible Oil A : It gives most positive test, hence is most adulterated.
Edible Oil B : It gives more positive test, hence is more adulterated.
Edible Oil C : It gives positive test to small extent, hence is least adulterated.
Adulterants in food
Adulteration in food, as a rule, is available in its most rough frame denied substances
are either included or somewhat or completely substituted. Often, the contamination/
pollution in food is done either for financial gain or due to carelessness and lack of the
proper hygienic condition of processing, storing, transportation and marketing.
This at last outcomes that the buyer is either swindled or regularly turned into a casualty
of ailments.Such types of contamination are quite common in developing countries or
backward countries. It is equally essential for the consumer to know the common
adulterants and their effect on health.

Aim
To prevent the interests of the consumers by eliminating fraudulent practices.
To prevent the public from poisonous and harmful foods
To prevent the sale of substandard foods

Theory
The growing number of food farmers and the unusual amount of import foodstuffs
enables the producers to mislead and cheat consumers.
To differentiate those who take advantage of legal rules from the ones who commit food
contamination is very difficult. The consciousness of consumers would be crucial.
Ignorance and unfair market behavior may endanger consumer health and misleading
can lead to poisoning. So we need simple screening, tests for their detection.
In the past few decades, contamination of food has become one of the severe problems.
Consumption of contaminated food causes severe diseases like cancer, diarrhea,
asthma, ulcers, etc. A majority share of fats, oils, and spread are paraffin wax, castor oil,
and hydrocarbons. Red bean stew powder is blended with black powder and pepper is
blended with dried papaya seeds. Simple chemical tests can easily identify These
adulterants.
AGMARK – acronym for agrarian advertising this association ensures nourishment items
for their quality. Its goal is to advance the Grading and Standardization of farming and
partnered items.
Several agencies .have been set up by the Government of India to remove adulterants
from foodstuff.

EXPERIMENT -1
Adulterants in oil, butter, and fat.
REQUIREMENTS : Test-tube, acetic anhydride, conc. H2SO4, acetic acid, conc. HNO3.
These are detected as follows :
(i) Adulteration of paraffin wax and hydrocarbon in vegetable ghee.
Droplets of oil swimming on the surface of remaining acetic anhydride unusual the
appearance of wax or hydrocarbons when some Flame apply the small amount of
vegetable ghee with acetic anhydride.
(ii) Adulteration of dyes in fat
Heat 1mL of fat with a mixture of 1mL of concentrated Sulphuric acid and 4mL of acetic
acid. Presence of red color indicates the presence of dye in fat.
(iii) Adulteration of argemone oil in edible oils
Take a small amount of oil in a test-tube, add some drops of concentrated HNO3 and
shake. Presence of red color in the acid layer indicates the presence of argemone oil.

EXPERIMENT -2
Adulterants in sugar
REQUIREMENTS: Test-tubes, dilute HCl.
(i) Adulteration of chalk powder, washing soda in sugar
Take the small amount of sugar in a test-tube, add few drops of dilute HCl. Active
bubbling of CO2 shows the presence of chalk powder or washing soda in the given
sample of sugar.
(ii) Adulteration of various insoluble substances in sugar
Take the small amount of sugar in a test-tube and shake it with little water. Pure sugar
dissolves in water, but insoluble impurities do not disappear.

EXPERIMENT -3
Adulterants in samples of chili powder.
REQUIREMENTS: Test-tubes, dilute HNO3.
PROCEDURE: Procedure to detected as follows.
(i) Contamination of red lead salts in chili powder
Take the sample of chili powder, add dilute HNO3. Filter the solution and add two drops
of potassium iodide solution to the filtrate. Yellow ppt. Confirms the presence of lead
salts in chili powder.
(ii) Contamination of brick powder in red chili powder
Take a small amount of given red chili powder in a beaker containing water. Brick
powder sinks at the bottom while pure chili powder floats over water.
(iii) Contamination of Oil soluble coal tar color in red chili powder.
Use two grams of the samples in a test tube, add few ml of solvent ether and shake,
Decant ether layer into a test tube containing 2ml of dilute Hydrochloric acid. Shake it;
the lower acid layer will be colored distinct pink to the red indicating presence of oil
soluble color.

EXPERIMENT -4
Adulterants in samples of pepper.
(i) Contamination of dried papaya seeds in pepper
Take a sample of pepper to a beaker containing water and stir with a glass rod. Dried
papaya seeds being lighter float over water while unadulterated pepper settles at the
base.
(ii)Contamination of Coated including mineral oil seeds in pepper
Black pepper coated with mineral oil gives a Kerosene-like smell.
(iii) Contamination of Light black pepper in pepper.
Swim the sample of black pepper in alcohol (rectified spirit). The ripe black pepper
berries sink while the papaya seeds and light black pepper float.

EXPERIMENT -5
Adulterants in samples of turmeric powder.
REQUIREMENTS: Test-tubes, conc. HCl.
PROCEDURE: Procedure is detected as follows.
(i) Contamination of yellow lead salts into turmeric powder
Take a sample of turmeric powder adds concentrated HCl. The appearance of magenta
color shows the presence of yellow oxides of lead in turmeric powder.
(ii)Contamination of Chalk or yellow soapstone powder to turmeric powder
Take a small quantity of turmeric powder in a test tube containing a small amount of
water. Add a few drops of concentrated HCl; effervescence will indicate the presence of
chalk or yellow soapstone powder.
(iii)Contamination of Starch maize, wheat, tapioca, rice to turmeric powder
A microscopic study reveals that only pure turmeric is yellow colored, big and has an
angular structure.

Tests for food Adulteration:

EXPT.
EXPERIMENT PROCEDURE OBSERVATION
NO.

Heat small amount of

vegetable ghee with acetic
Adulteration of paraffin anhydride. Droplets of oil Appearance of oil floating
1 wax and hydrocarbon in floating on the surface of on the
vegetable ghee unused acetic anhydride surface.
indicate the presence of
wax or hydrocarbon.

Heat 1mL of fat with a

Adulteration of dyes mixture of 1mL of conc.
2 Appearance of pink colour.
in fat H2SO4 and 4mL of acetic
acid.

3 Adulteration of argemone To small amount of oil in a

No red colour
oil in edible test tube, add few drops of
 oils conc. HNO3 & shake. observed

Pure sugar dissolves in

Adulteration of various Take small amount of
water
4 insoluble sugar in a test tube and
but insoluble
substances in sugar shake it with little water.
impurities do not dissolve.

Adulteration of chalk To small amount of sugar

No brisk effervescence
5 powder, washing soda in a test tube, add a few
observed.
in sugar drops of dil. HCl.

Adulteration of yellow lead To sample of turmeric Appearance of magenta

6
salts to turmeric powder powder, add conc. HCl. colour

Take 1/4th of teaspoon of

Turmeric Powder in a test
tube. Add 3 ml of alcohol in
A pink colouration
Adulteration of Metanil it. Shake the tube
indicates the presence of
7 Yellow colour in turmeric thoroughly to mix up the
Metanil Yellow colour in
powder contents. Add 10 drops of
the Turmeric Powder.
Muratic Acid or
Hydrochloric Acid in the
test tube.

To a sample of chilli
powder, add dil. HNO3.
Adulteration of red lead
8 Filter the No yellow ppt.
salts in chilli powder
solution and add 2 drops of
KI solution to the filtrate.

Brick powder settles

Add small amount of given
Adulteration of brick at the bottom while
9 red chilli powder in a
powder in chilli powder pure chilli powder floats
beaker containing water.
over water.

Add small amount of Dried papaya seeds being

sample lighter float
Adulteration of dried
10 of pepper to beaker over water while
papaya seeds in pepper
containing water and stir pure pepper settles at the
with a glass rod. bottom.

11 Adulteration of Scorched Take 1 teaspoon of the A red coloration indicates

 Persimmon stones in coffee powder and spread the presence of the
COFFEE POWDER it on a moisturized blotting powder of Scorched
paper. Pour 3 ml of 2% Persimmon Stones in the
Aqueous Solution of Coffee Powder.
Sodium Carbonate slowly
and carefully on it.

Mustard seeds have a

smooth surface. But When Mustard seed is
Adulteration of Argemone argemone seed have pressed inside it is yellow
12
seed in Mustard seed rough surface and are while for argemone seed it
black and hence can be is white.
separated out.

Adulteration of Soap stone Shake little portion of the Soap stone or other earthy
13 or other earthy matter in sample with water and matter will settle down at
Hinge allow to settle. the bottom.

Take a cotton piece If the cotton absorbs

soaked in Liquid Paraffin, colour, it indicates the use
Adulteration Rhodamine B
14 and rub the outer red of Rhodamine B colour on
colour in Sweet Potato
surface of the sweet outer surface of the sweet
potato. potato.

Keep the marble in a

On a marble piece put a
slanted position, the milk
drop of milk with water and
containing water moves
15 Adulteration Water in Milk another drop of milk
downward faster as
without water (for
compared to milk with
comparison).
water.

The rosy coloration

Take 3 ml of the milk in a
Adulteration Sodium indicates the presence of
16 test tube. Add 10 drops of
Bicarbonate in Milk sodium bicarbonate in the
rosalic acid solution.
milk.

CONCLUSION
The consumer should avoid taking food from an unhygienic place and food being served
under unsanitary conditions. Such types of food may cause various diseases.
Consumption of cut fruits being sold in dirty situations should be circumvented. It is
always better to buy certified food from the reputed shop.
It is not possible to ensure healthy eating only on visual examination when the toxic
contaminants are present in ppm level.Collection of nutritious and non-adulterated food
is essential for daily life to make sure that such foods do not cause any health hazard.
However, visual inspection of the food before purchase makes sure to provide an
absence of insects, optic fungus, foreign matters, etc. It also helps in checking the
freshness of the food and the period of best before use.

Therefore, due care taken by the consumer at the time of purchase of food after
thoroughly examining can be of great help. Secondly, label declaration on a packed diet
is crucial for knowing the ingredients and nutritional value.