Curry colouring may be dangerous for human health

Main Category: Respiratory / Asthma
Article Date: 24 Mar 2004 - 0:00 PDT

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Trading standards officials have found that the colouring levels in many chicken tikka masalas are illegal. Officials have found that many restaurants in the UK are serving the country's favourite dish with potentially dangerous levels of colouring.

Consumer watchdogs say there should be nationwide checks.

After checks were carried out in 102 restaurants in Surrey (UK) they found that 58 were putting illegal amounts of three chemicals in their dishes. These chemical are linked to hyperactivity in children. They are also linked to allergies, asthma, migraine and cancer. The three chemicals are from tartrazine (E102) , sunset yellow (E110) and ponceau 4R (E124).

The checks were carried out by Surrey County Council.

The Council said its findings were 'staggering'. In fact, one restaurant was serving dishes with four times the legal limit of colouring.

The Council said "Many restaurants produce curries in this way because that is what the customers have come to expect. Part of the problem undoubtedly stems from a consumer preference for strong colours and a mistaken belief that it enhances the flavour. There is also the widely held notion that the redder a dish is, the hotter it is."

Many people are told to try to avoid these chemicals if they experience a reaction. The problem is that restaurants do not have to indicate that they are present in their dishes.
Top Indian food gourmets say that these dishes do not need these chemicals to taste good. They say that ingredients such as turmeric, saffron and paprika should be used to get the colour you want.

Tartrazine has been linked to allergic reactions in people who suffer from asthma as well as people who are aspirin intolerant. It is commonly added to cakes, fruit squashes and many sauces. It can also be found in chicken feed - the aim of the farmer here is to produce a better colour yolk in the eggs. Norway and Finland have banned its use in chicken feed. It is, however, commonly used in the UK.

Sunset yellow is banned in Norway and Finland. Apparently, it has been linked to chromosome damage, kidney tumours, hives and vomiting. Ponceau 4R is banned in the USA and Norway, it is a red dye and has been linked to cancer in animals.

Phil Thomas, Trading Standards Institute, UK said: "We have evidence to suggest this is a national problem, not just specific to Surrey and we are urging trading standards services across the UK to work with Indian restaurants in their area to ensure the amount of colourants used is within the legal limits."