The situation of food adulteration in Kashmir region is precarious. The menace which is the act of lowering the quality of food by adding inferior substances or extracting valuable components is rampant, considering these facts.
Even the spices that Kashmiri culture takes pride in, such as saffron are of low quality and mixed with artificial dyes. The holistic approach resulting from these factors have proven extremely detrimental for the Kashmiri citizens, considering the reality of plunging kidney disorders, vaporized immune systems, and, worst of all, cancer.
It is no surprise that young kids and elderly people, both of which are far more susceptible to diseases, have a much larger chance of falling victim to food adulteration.
On top of the plethora of health remodels these factors would induce, one major downfall is how people would be stripped of the faith and confidence they have in the markets along with the adverse effect it would have on tourism in Kashmir, the pinnacle of the country.
The root causes of food adulteration stems from a range of aspects including weak regulatory frameworks and lack of public awareness which are some of the fundamental issues that have given rise to an environment where traders can operate without any consequences.
The situation lacks powerful testing equipment and the food safety authorities operate below capacity which makes everything worse. Ultimately, the high cost of living for small-scale vendors pushes them to dilute food products for profit.
Addressing this will need more than one course of action. From the onset, the authorities need to step up and put proper enforcement of food safety standards into place. These measures should help regular food safety inspections, serious fines for breaking the law, and the setting up of proper testing laboratories for precision testing.
Moreover, campaigns that assist the consumers in understanding the adverse effects of adulterated food and spotting fake products should be put into motion.
Local people and civil society organizations also have an important part to play. Citizens can play this role by turning everyone into watchdogs against this problem and building a stronger understanding and expectation of accountability.
