Renowned Indian spice brands MDH and Everest have come under intense scrutiny and faced bans in international markets due to alleged contamination concerns.
Last month, Hong Kong and Singapore took action by banning select spice products from MDH and Everest after reportedly detecting elevated levels of a cancer-causing pesticide. Both companies vehemently denied these allegations, asserting the safety of their products.
A thorough analysis revealed alarming statistics regarding MDH’s export shipments to the United States. Approximately 14.5% of MDH’s shipments to the US encountered rejection, primarily due to bacterial presence, with salmonella being a notable concern according to data from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Furthermore, over 20% of MDH’s 65 shipments failed quality checks between October 2023 and May 3, 2024, leading to rejection. Notably, previous fiscal years also witnessed rejection percentages, with 15% in FY 2022-23 and 8.19% in FY 2021-22. These rejections were predominantly attributed to salmonella contamination.
Conversely, Everest faced fewer rejections in the US market, with only one out of 450 shipments being rejected due to salmonella contamination in FY 2023-24. However, previous years saw instances of product recalls and rejections, notably in 2021-22 when no shipments faced rejection, but in 2022-23, approximately 3.7% of shipments were halted.
The situation escalated further when Singapore’s Food Agency (SFA) recalled Everest’s Fish Curry Masala due to ethylene oxide levels surpassing permissible limits. Although SFA assured no immediate health risks from low levels of ethylene oxide, prolonged exposure could pose carcinogenic hazards.
In response to the bans and recalls, the Spices Board of India announced mandatory testing for ethylene oxide in spice consignments destined for Singapore and Hong Kong. The board is actively collaborating with exporters to identify the root cause of the issue and propose corrective measures.
These recent events underscore the critical importance of stringent quality control measures in the food industry, particularly concerning international trade and consumer safety.
