Those who claim that they are what they eat could be experiencing identity crises. The foods consumed daily could comprise of ingredients or raw materials that are not recommended or supposed to be present. This situation is referred to as food fraud, which is a major concern in grocery stores. Some of the food products that are on the top of the list when it comes to food fraud include honey, fish, orange juice, milk and olive oil. Grocery stores are now filled with cheap imitations. One of the ways such imitations are made is by replacing one ingredient with another one. This becomes extremely hard for consumers.
The ingredients that are particularly susceptible to fraud are the high cost ingredients. This is according to a senior Research Associate at Rockefeller University, Dr. Mark Stoeckle. Dr. Stoeckle further added that manufacturers are substituting high cost products with cheaper fake products. Olive oil is among the top fraudster foods. Extra virgin olive oil is most of the times adulterated by adding hazelnut. This could be risky to consumers diagnosed with allergies linked to nut and nut products. Even milk is adulterated by adding salt, skim powder and sugar. None of the mentioned ingredients is indicated in milk labels. Lawn grass is at times used to fill up tea bags. White tuna, which is usually more expensive, is substituted with cheaper escolar. Another common faux food is honey. Sugar syrup, high fructose corn syrup, and corn syrup are some of the ingredients used to dilute honey. Food Safety News has also stated that some honey imported from China contains heavy metals and antibiotics. Following the increasing rate of food fraud, there is the need to push for additional regulation and testing on imported foods.
I’m no longer sure where you’re getting your info, however it is mostly factual – thanks.