Chhattisgarh FDA asks vendors not to use newspapers for packing food

The Chhattisgarh government has appealed to vendors as well as consumers to avoid using scrap newspaper for packing food items as the ink used in newspapers contains hazardous chemicals.

Street food vendors often use scrap newspaper for wrapping food as it is cheap while people too use newspaper at home sometimes to remove excess oil from deep-fried items, a Food and Drug Administration (FDA) department official said on Tuesday.

But the harmful chemicals and dyes in the newspaper ink affect the quality of food and can cause serious health problems like digestive disorders, toxicity, cancer, failure of vital organs and weakening of the immune system, he said.

Hence, the FDA has appealed to food vendors, traders and businesses not to use newspapers for wrapping or packaging eatables, and if despite warnings a vendor continues the practise, a complaint should be registered with the FDA, the official added.