Reconstituted milk: a tracer to detect fraud - media24
This Thursday, February 28, the draft decree n ° 2-18-709 modifying and supplementing decree n ° 2-00-425 relating to the control of production and marketing of milk and dairy products will be discussed in government council.
This decree is a response from the supervisory authorities to a controversy following a media survey24 which revealed in June 2018, while the boycott campaign of dairy products was in full swing, that operators in the sector were suspected of using themilk powder to make reconstituted milk, which they sold as a fresh milk.
A practice prohibited by law, which has spread and even accentuated during the boycott period by operators to gain market share.
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Media24 obtained a copy of the draft decree.The changes all relate to milk powder and the explicit accuracy of the prohibition of its use in the manufacture of sterilized milk.
The new decree specifies certain definitions contained in the old text and adds a new.Thus, the definition of reconstituted milk was slightly retouched.
Here is the old definition: reconstituted milk: the product obtained by addition of water to milk powder in the proportion necessary to restore the specified water / dairy solid ratio;
The new formulation is as follows:
Reconstituted milk: the product obtained by addition of water to powdered milk in the proportion necessary to restore the specified ratio water / dairy solids.
To this, the legislator adds a new definition, that of the nonexistent dairy preparations in the decree currently in force.
Dairy preparations: products from the mixture of natural milk components obtained by drying such as powdered whey, powdered lactrum or powdered lactrum permeat.
The other article which has undergone significant changes in the new decree is article 9 relating to the prohibition of the manufacture of reconstituted milk.
In its current formulation, the text is quite vague.It provides that "the manufacture of reconstructed milks sterilized and/or sterilized UHT, is only authorized under the conditions which will be fixed by decree of the Minister responsible for agriculture".
The new decree further specifies this aspect by adding a very important detail, a tracer that makes it possible to detect reconstituted milk namely starch.
Until then, it is very difficult for authorities to provide irrefutable evidence attesting to fresh milk substitution by reconstituted milk as we had explained in previous articles.
"Control of the finished product (to detect the use of milk powder) is scientifically difficult", explained in June 2018 a source of health standards.
To detect this fraud, ONSSA uses the audit of the registers of operators in the sector to make a connection between the collection figures (how many milk collected, when, where and from whom) with the volumes sold.The gaps found imply the use of powdered milk.
The other means, just as uncertain, is the analysis of protein rates and fat.These two components are lower in the milk reconstituted in comparison with fresh milk.
"You have to find the brand of powder tracers in milk and all powders do not have tracers.There is no standardized protocol, "assured us our source in 2018.
It will now be done, if the draft decree is adopted as it is.
"Only powdered milk and dairy preparations added to starch soluble at a dose of five (05) grams for miles grams (1000) of powder can be used by establishments and companies to manufacture treated and dairy products", is it specified in the decree.
Starch is used in this case as a tracer.This measure will facilitate finite product control, because a simple analysis to seek starch will prove that this or that operator uses powdered milk or dairy preparations in the production of milk supposed to be fresh.
In addition, the requirement of adding starch "does not apply to establishment and companies that exclusively manufacture one or more of the following products:
- powdered milk intended for a final consumer marketed in containers of 5 kg maximum
- Mettled cheese
- Mettled cheese allégé ».
These details made, the new article 9 of the decree insists on the illicit and fraudster character of the manufacture of reconstituted milk.
"It is not considered a lawful operation or treatment and constitutes fraud, within the meaning of article 16 of law n ° 13-83 aforementioned, the use of powdered milk or dairy preparations for the manufacture ofreconstituted milk ".
The legislator reserves the right "to authorize the use of powdered milk added or not of the starch under conditions set by decree of the authority responsible for agriculture for the manufacture of sterilized and or sterilized reconstructed milks UHT, in particular to meet the needs of the national market or export purposes ”.
This decree, the Ministry of Agriculture will only use it exceptionally to meet the needs of the market."And even in this situation, powdered milk will not be used in the production of fresh milk, strictly illicit in all cases," assures us a source to the ONSSA contacted on this subject.
Our source insists, within the framework of this decree, the use of powdered milk is only tolerated for the production of UHT milk or reconstituted militas sterilized.
At this level, it would have been wise that the authorities require operators to specify the reconstituted nature of this milk on the packaging so that the consumer is aware that the milk purchased is not fresh milk.
In addition, the Ministry of Agriculture adds another level of control through article 9 bis.
In this article, it is required "from the establishments and companies referred to in article 9 above to keep a register relating to the use of powdered milk and dairy preparations retracing their origin, their use and the situation of the stocks held»».
"Said register must be listed, initialed and updated by the operator of the establishment or the company concerned.He must be able to be consulted at any time by the authorized agents of the ONSSA services.The model and content of the above-mentioned register are fixed by decree of the government authority responsible for agriculture ".
According to our sources, this text if it is adopted as it is, will finally give the ONSSA a simple, effective and quick means of proving fraud in this area.
And to support these new measures, ONSSA plans to strengthen unexpected controls in order to verify that these provisions are respected.
