Nearly 50% of ghee, 44% of milk powder fail safety standards, PCSIR report finds

Profit by Pakistan Today reported that a PCSIR report presented to the National Price Monitoring Committee on Wednesday found nearly half of the vegetable ghee sampled did not conform to prescribed standards. Milk products also fell short, with 44.5% of powdered milk and 25% of liquid milk samples found non-conforming. The findings were presented at a meeting chaired by Minister for Planning Ahsan Iqbal.

Non-conformance was highest in Sindh at 44.3%, ahead of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa at 26.13%. Trans fat in certain ghee samples touched 15.87g per 100g, close to eight times the PSQCA limit of 2g. The report links dietary trans fat to higher LDL cholesterol, inflammation and a greater risk of heart attacks.

Iqbal directed authorities to take immediate enforcement action and to set up a coordinated quality-control mechanism with the four Provincial Food Authorities. He said action should focus on manufacturers instead of retailers alone, and ordered quarterly monitoring covering rural markets. Iqbal said the goal was better quality rather than closing industries, and the complete report is to be forwarded to the Ministry of National Food Security and Research for action.