Industry, NGOs spar over 'cancer-causing bread'

Even as government plans to ban use of 'cancer-causing' potassium bromate, a food additive widely used in breads to enhance dough strength and give uniform finish to baked products in the next 15 days, industry body Assocham has hit out at NGOs for alleged scare-mongering.

The industry body in a statement said, "NGOs are free to be watchdogs, but they must realise that their reports and findings should not be targeted only at the industry... While the government is trying to move towards ease of doing business by relaxing the inspector raj, the NGO policing may harm many times."

Country's food safety regulator, Food Safety Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), has recommended removal of potassium bromate as one of 11,000 permissible food additives that are allowed in food business.

According to a Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) study, nearly 84 per cent of 38 commonly available brands of pre-packaged breads, including pav and buns, tested positive for potassium bromate and potassium iodate, banned in many countries as they are listed as "hazardous" for public health.