The Quality Control Centre (QCC) laboratories of the Pakistan Standards and Quality Control Authority (PSQCA) have found sugar being produced locally as sub-standard and not to the satisfaction of consumers' health and safety.
These samples of locally manufactured sugar were recently collected from open markets in Karachi, Quetta, and Multan and analysed at the QCC. It appears from the reports that all the 10 samples have failed so far the characteristics of Icumsa unit and sulphur dioxide are concerned, as all the samples exceeded the prescribed maximum level of 60-80 for Icumsa and 15 for sulphur dioxide. Some time back, when Indian sugar was imported and tested at the QCC laboratories, it had also failed in the same characteristics.
In the emergency meeting of the National Standards Committee (NSC) for Agriculture & Food products held in November last year, it was decided that the existing level of Icumsa (60-150) in the present standard be reduced to 60-80. Similarly, the level of sulphur dioxide is reduced from 20 and 70 to 15 only.
Engr. Parvez Butt, secretary, Ministry of Science & Technology, (MoST), presiding over the meeting had stressed the need for standardisation on sugar in order to regulate trade of the country and also the interests of the consumers should remain paramount.
The International Commission for Uniform Methods of Sugar Analysis (Icumsa) is a world-wide body, which brings together the activities of the national committees for sugar analysis in more than 30-member countries. The work is carried out under various subject headings, each headed by a referee.
Methods are recommended for tentative approval of Icumsa in the first instance. Upon meeting all of the Commission's requirements, methods are accorded official status. Methods which are demonstrably useful and have found an established application, or which do not lend themselves to collaborate testing are given an accepted status.
An Icumsa rating is an international unit for expressing the purity of sugar in solution, and is directly related to the colour of the sugar. There are different types of Icumsa units. For Brazilian sugar, the lower the Icumsa figure the whiter the sugar. However, this is not the case in the EU for some unknown reason, which has been the subject of much discussion.
Similarly, what effect might sulphur dioxide have on health? According to expert medical study, exposure to concentrations of 10 to 50 parts per million for 5 to 15 minutes causes irritation of the eyes, nose and throat, choking and coughing.
Exposure of the eyes to liquid sulpher dioxide, (from, for example an industrial accident) can cause severe burns, resulting in the loss of vision. On the skin it produces burns. Other side-effects include headache, general discomfort and anxiety. Those with impaired heart or lung function and asthmatics are at increased risk. Repeated or prolonged exposure to moderate concentrations may cause inflammation of the respiratory tract, wheezing and lung damage. It has also proved to be harmful to the reproductive systems of experimental animals and caused developmental changes in their new-born.
Keeping in view the imperatives of Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT) regarding import/export of sugar, it was further recommended by NSC, in which stakeholders from sugar industry also participated, that sugar in Pakistan need to be included in the mandatory list of PSQCA. This was considered necessary in the larger interest of the public safety and health of consumers in the country. This would also place sugar on the list of TBT for import purposes.
The NSC also agreed that in order to have quality assurance of the locally manufactured sugar in the market as well as of the imported sugar, the PSQCA will charge marking fee @ 0.1 percent ex-factory price of sugar for the use of PS mark on the product.
The Pakistan Sugar Mills Association (PSMA), however, conveyed their reluctance to bring sugar on mandatory list of the PSQCA and objected to the charging of marking fee. The PSMA thought that the rate of marking fees was excessive and unbearable for the industry.
According to the PSQCA the rate of 0.1 percent ex-factory price of compulsory items is uniformly applicable by the PSQCA for all mandatory items. The Authority is of the view that this rate is not at all excessive for the reason that this implies merely 10 paisa for every Rs 100. In case of sugar as per notification of the FBR, the sale price has ranged from Rs 29 to Rs 21 during 2006-07. Therefore, the marking fees being charged shall be 2.1 paisa only per kg and for one metric ton selling for Rs 21,000 this amount will be Rs 21 only.
A comparative statement of GCC's test results show that Icumsa level ranged between 110 and 430 as against maximum level of 60 in case of refined sugar and 80 in case of white level.
Refined and white sugars have been defined as under: Refined sugar - white sugar which has been further purified to obtain white, odourless, crystalline sugar free from dirt and/or any other extraneous matter. White sugar - crystalline sugar, off white in colour manufactured by vacuum pan process.
Sugar samples of the following mills were taken: Ansari Sugar Mills, Sindh Abadgar Sugar Mills, Digri Sugar Mills, Tharparkar Sugar Mills, Dewan Sugar Mills, Ansari Sugar Mills, Badin Sugar Mills, Sakrand Sugar Mills, Matyari Sugar Mills, and Habib Sugar Mills.