FSSAI of India bans Silver Leaf (Chandi ka warq) of Animal Origin in Food Items

FSSAI of India bans Silver Leaf (Chandi ka warq) of Animal Origin in Food Items

FSSAI bans Silver Leaf (Chandi ka Varakh) of Animal Origin

The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has banned the use of any material of animal origin in silver leaf (chandi ka warq/Varakh), commonly used in confectioneries (sweet meat) and sweets like barfi for decoration and also in paan and packaged supari.

This news is reported by the Times of India-Aug 2, 2016 and I have provided some links of actual news from various newspapers at the end of the e-mail.

The FSSAI authority of India has banned this item because in the manufacturing of silver leaf (Varakh), cow’s or other animal’s ox-gut (intestine) is used which is obtained from the slaughterhouse.  The intestine (ox-gut) is smeared with blood and mucus when is pulled out from the slaughtered animal by the butcher and sold as is to the Silver Leaf manufacturers.  The small thin strips of silver placed between layers of ox-gut and are hammered to produce the glittering foil.  This manufacturing process is under very filthy surroundings.  This is the main reason the FSSAI authority of India has banned the Silver Leaf (Chandi ka warq or varakh) on the food product. 

Veggie Silver Leaf (Varakh)

Recently several companies have advertised that they produce the Veggie Varakh without using cows’ intestine.  This process is costly and hence in the country like India, one can easily obtain false certification and sell the regular Varakh as cheap veggie Varakh.  Also the Varakh decorates the food/sweets only but does not add any nutritional value to it.  The best alternative is to avoid the Varakh on the food.

Where to Report/Complain about Violators

FSSAI encourages to post complains/comments about food safety issue related to adulteration, contamination, poor quality, improper packing, insufficient information on label, misleading advertisements, incomplete information about food, clarification from food operator on license, etc etc" by going to the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) websitehttp://www.fssai.gov.in/ or click the link http://www.fssai.gov.in/Feedback.aspx  and Fill in online the “Consumer's Complaints / Suggestions / Queries Form”

The FSSAI will be every much happy to help you as well guide you.  Please insert your e-mail and identify yourself to receive a suitable reply.

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India is the World’s Largest Beef Exporter

CNN money news of August 5, 2016 published that India is the world's largest beef exporter.  The article indicates that the large number of animals are needed to keep India's huge domestic dairy industry going.  Because of the existence of this huge dairy industry, there are plenty of grown-up cows and buffaloes are available to slaughter for beef. The dairy cows and buffaloes are significantly cheaper than the animals which are raised for beef only, because the dairy animals produce income during their growth period of first 5 years. Hence 5-year-old dairy cow and buffalo is much cheaper than non-dairy cow or buffalo raised for beef only.

In other words, Jains and vegetarian Hindus who consume milk and other dairy products directly support the beef industry because every milk producing Cows and Buffaloes are slaughtered after about 5 years of age to support beef export industry while their life expectancy is about 20 years.  I have also compiled the CNN’s article at this link for easy reviewhttp://www.jainelibrary.org/$india_beef_export

Baby Calf’s Milk is Stolen from Mother Cow by Humans

Any drop of milk that we use or consume is stolen (taken without the permission) from mother cow or buffalo that was meant for her baby.  Nature has not made cows or buffaloes to produce more milk than the need of their babies unless we feed them hormones and genetically modify their genes. With the continuous use of hormones, we have forced the bodies of the mother cows and buffaloes to produce three to four times more milk than their natural need of their babies.  Because of this reason, cows and buffaloes body breaks-down in five years and milk production yield drops significantly.  At this time, we send them to slaughter-house.

Summary

We Jains and vegetarian Hindus use Silver Leaf (Varakh) and milk in Tirthankara’s/God's Puja, other religious rituals, and almost all sweets served in Jain functions.  Such items are very Himsak (Violent).  It is obtained by torturing and indirectly or directly killing Cows or Buffaloes or other five sensed animals.

In today’s environment, the production of milk (other dairy products), wool, silk, and pearl are as Himsak (violent) as the production of meat and silver leaf.  We Jains and vegetarian Hindus should banned all such items in our religious rituals and religious functions.

We have banned such items in our JAINA Pathashala Educational books of North America (USA and Canada). More than 3000 students are in Pathashalas of North America.

“We must Practice our Religion based the Time, Place, and Environment we live in” and “We must accept the truth from whatever source it comes.”  This is the essence of Lord Mahavir’s preaching.

The Book of Compassion

In the year 2000, Pujya Paramodaben Chitrabhanuji and I (Pravin K Shah) have compiled several such types of articles in English in a book named “The Book of Compassion”.  Later the book was translated in Gujarati and Hindi languages.  You can download the soft copy of any of these books from the following links of the Jain eLibrary website (www.jainelibrary.org).

Sr Num 000221 - JES 921 Book of Compassion Reverence for All Life

Sr Num 000223 - JES 922 કરૂણાનો સ્રોત આચરમાં અહિંસા

Sr Num 000225 - JES 923 करूणा में स्रोत_आचरण में अहिंसा

List of Articles compiled in “The Book of Compassion”

01 - My Visit to A Dairy Farm

02 -Dairy Cows - Life, Usage, and Sufferings

03 - Recycling of Slaughterhouses Waste

04 - Milk – Its Impact on Health, Cruelty, and Pollution

05 - Is Nothing Sacred? - Cruelty towards India’s Holy Animals

06 - Vegetarianism - A Compassionate Approach to Life

07 - Varakh (Silver Foil or Leaf)

08 - Facts about Eggs

09 - Story of Silk

10 - Story of Pearls

11 - The Myth about Milk

12 - Alternatives to Animal Abuse

·         Food Alternatives:

·         Clothing Alternatives:

·         Household Goods Alternatives:

·         Medicines, Drugs, Vitamins Alternatives:

·         Sports, Entertainment Alternatives:

·         Animal Based Additives to Avoid

13 - What Our Readers say about – “My Visit to A Dairy Farm” article

Pravin K Shah
Jaina Education Committee
Jain eLibrary in-charge
E-mail – jainaedu@gmail.com
Aug 6, 2016

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Actual News of various Newspaper Links

FSSAI bans silver leaf of animal origin in food items

Times of India-Aug 2, 2016

The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has banned the use of any material of animal origin in silver leaf (chandi ka warq), ...

Food regulator bans use of animal parts in manufacturing silver leaf

Hindustan Times-Jul 19, 2016

Food regulator bans use of animal parts in manufacturing silver leaf ... leaf cannot be manufactured using any animal material of animal origin ...

Silver leaf made from animal parts banned

Times of India-Jul 21, 2016

Following the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) notification, the ... Fine silver foil or silver leaf, is used to decorate sweets and ... any animal material of animal origin at any stage of manufacturing process.

FSSAI bans on silver leaf from animals parts

The Siasat Daily-Jul 20, 2016

FSSAI bans on silver leaf from animal parts ... New Delhi: The food regulator of India, FSSAI has banned the use of silver foil with ... silver leaf cannot be manufactured using any animal material of animal origin at any stage.

India is projected to be the largest exporter of beef

World Beef Exports: Ranking Of Countries

India is projected to be the largest exporter of beef in the world in 2015 followed by Australia & Brazil. Beef exports in India include carabeef.

Published on: Aug 3, 2016

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Australia passes Brazil as 2nd largest beef exporter

India is projected to be the largest exporter of beef in the world in 2015 followed by Australia & Brazil.  Beef exports in India include carabeef. 

Four (4) countries are projected to export more than 1 million metric tons of beef in 2015.  India, Brazil Australia & the United States.

Australia takes over the 2nd spot from Brazil in 2015.

World		9,990,000	9,601,000	-389,000
Rank	Country	2014	2015	Change
1	India	2,082,000	2,000,000	-82,000
2	Australia	1,851,000	1,815,000	-36,000
3	Brazil	1,909,000	1,625,000	-284,000
4	United States	1,167,000	1,035,000	-132,000
5	New Zealand	579,000	590,000	11,000
6	Paraguay	389,000	400,000	11,000
7	Canada	378,000	375,000	-3,000
8	Uruguay	350,000	360,000	10,000
9	EU	300,000	300,000	0
10	Mexico	194,000	245,000	51,000
11	Argentina	197,000	230,000	33,000
12	Belarus	184,000	195,000	11,000
13	Nicaragua	133,000	125,000	-8,000
14	Pakistan	59,000	65,000	6,000
15	South Africa	44,000	60,000	16,000
16	Ukraine	30,000	45,000	15,000
17	Costa Rica	23,000	25,000	2,000
18	China	30,000	20,000	-10,000
19	Saudi Arabia	20,000	20,000	0
20	Malaysia	11,000	13,000	2,000
21	Bosnia	2,000	10,000	8,000
22	Chile	6,000	10,000	4,000
23	Russia	10,000	8,000	-2,000
24	Honduras	7,000	6,000	-1,000
25	Colombia	13,000	5,000	-8,000
26	Guatemala	4,000	5,000	1,000
27	South Korea	3,000	5,000	2,000
28	Switzerland	3,000	3,000	0
29	Japan	1,000	2,000	1,000
30	Lebanon	4,000	2,000	-2,000
31	Kazakhstan	1,000	1,000	0
32	Philippines	1,000	1,000	0
33	Azerbaijan	3,000	0	-3,000
34	Jamaica	1,000	0	-1,000
35	Taiwan	1,000	0	-1,000
	Source:  FAS/USDA (metric tons) Cattle slaughter, in varying degrees Chevrolet India Ad Join our drive for safer roads.     Pedestrian safety tips during the monsoon. RUKMINI S COMMENT (21)   ·   PRINT   ·   T  T   37 TOPICS food and dining (general) meat human interest animal With Maharashtra’s long-pending Bill widening its ban on cow slaughter getting Presidential assent on Monday, The Hindu took a look at the status of the legislation across the country. Ritwika Sharma and Alok Prasanna Kumar, fellows at the Delhi-based Vidhi Centre for Legal Policy, compiled all State-level legislation and amendments on the slaughter of cows and other types of cattle for The Hindu. The data shows that Indian States can be classified into five categories — north-eastern States with no restrictions on cattle slaughter; Kerala with no law but a caveat; Tamil Nadu, West Bengal and Assam which allow the slaughter of cattle with a certificate; Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Bihar, Goa and Odisha which ban cow slaughter, but allow the slaughter of other cattle with a certificate; and the rest of India which bans the slaughter of all cattle. Beef is less popular than other meats, The Hindu’s analysis of data from the 2011-12 National Sample Survey shows, with just four per cent of rural Indians and five per cent of urban Indians saying that they consumed beef within the last week. However, consumption varies widely by State; the average person from Nagaland eats half a kilo of beef in a month, while the average person from Punjab, Chhattisgarh and Himachal Pradesh doesn’t eat any. Correction The graphic accompanying “Cattle slaughter in varying degrees” (March 4, 2015) erroneously says that Karnataka has banned all cattle slaughter. Actually, the State permits the slaughter of cattle other than cows with a 'fit for slaughter' certificate. The graphic has been corrected on March 4, 2015 Keywords: Cattle slaughter, cow slaughter, beef