Khan Market apples too shiny, Ram Vilas Paswan swings into action

NEW DELHI: A fruit shop in posh Khan Market in south Delhi is facing the music after Union consumer affairs minister Ram Vilas Paswan found that apples bought from the shop had extra layers of wax to make it look more fresh and "extra shiny".
Soon after he flagged the issue, different agencies have swung into action and his ministry has also written to the food safety regulator, FSSAI to look into the sale of food items containing "extraneous matter" to the consumers.
Paswan said the apples were brought from a reputed shop. "When I was going to make Russian salad, I asked the cook to wash apples. I make it a point that all shiny food items must be washed properly. He told me that despite repeated washing, the apple was shining. When he used a knife to take out the wax coating we noticed deep layers of wax on the apple. I informed my department officials," he said. The imported apple cost Rs 420 a kg.
When contacted the shop owner admitted that it had received a packet of waxed American apples from Azadpur mandi. "We don't sell any waxed fruit and that's why we have different clientele. As soon as we received the complaint, we removed those apples. We follow the best standards and there have been no such case in the past. The quality inspectors who visit our shop in regular intervals have never found any waxed fruit being sold here," the shop owner told TOI .
The minister recalled his personal experience soon after he appealed to consumers to be extra careful and thoroughly wash all fruits and vegetables that look extra shiny.
FSSAI has notified the norms for wax coatings and all relevant stakeholders are required to label fresh fruits and vegetables that have been waxed. Fruits coated with food-grade waxes approved by FSSAI are generally safe to eat.
Paswan in the past has also spoken in public how it's difficult to find unadulterated food items in India while in developed countries it's impossible to find adulterated food. To deal with adulteration of food items, the recently notified Consumer Protection Act has stringent provisions including high fines and jail term for violators.