There have been growing concerns about the safety of food coming from India.
This all started with spices. Many countries, including Hong Kong, Singapore, and the Maldives, have stopped allowing Indian spices into their markets because of worries they might be unsafe. This is because some Indian spice companies are using a harmful chemical called ethylene oxide, which is banned in many places. After all, it can cause cancer.
The problem isn’t just with spices. Nuts, dried fruits, and other Indian food products have also been flagged for being low quality, which has raised concerns around the world. In the United States, for example, many shipments of spices from India were rejected last year because they contained dangerous substances or had been tampered with.
This issue isn’t limited to food. There have also been problems with medicine made in India. Some Indian medicine companies have gotten a bad reputation for making medicine that isn’t good enough. Tragically, this led to the deaths of 68 children in Uzbekistan earlier this year who drank cough syrup imported from India. Tests showed the syrup contained very high levels of a dangerous chemical.
Some people believe that the Indian government isn’t doing enough to fix these problems and is more interested in other things. They say the government should be focusing on making sure food and medicine from India are safe.