Tirupati laddu ghee had pig & beef fat, fish oil: Lab report released by AP govt

Tirupati laddu ghee had pig & beef fat, fish oil: Lab report released by AP govt

 Sandeep.Raghavan@timesofindia.com

 Tirupati : A laboratory analysis of samples of cow ghee, supplied to the Tirumala temple trust for making its famous Tirupati laddu prasadam during the term of the YSRCP govt in Andhra Pradesh, has revealed presence of foreign fats including lard (clarified pig fat), tallow (beef fat) and fish oil. The report was made public by the TDP govt on Thursday. The samples also contained fats from vegetable sources like coconut, linseed, rapeseed and cottonseed. 

The analysis was conducted on July 23 after the govt received complaints of change in taste of the laddu prasadam. Andhra Pradesh CM N Chandrababu Naidu had sparked a controversy on Wednesday when he told NDA allies that animal fat had been found in the ghee supplied for the laddus when YSRCP governed the state. YSRCP had reacted angrily, denying the allegations and claiming it to be one of Naidu’s political stunts. The analysis by the Centre for Analysis and Learning in Livestock and Food (CALF) of National Dairy Development Board (NDDB), however, comes with a caveat — there can be chances of false positive results in certain circumstances. 

The report has listed several conditions where a result could go wrong, including in cases like overfeeding cows with feed rich in vegetable oils, underfeeding cows or the milk being subjected to technological treatments like removal of cholesterol. The report is silent whether the adulterants were deliberately added or crept in through feeding conditions and other factors. Naidu’s allegation and the NDDB’s report have shocked millions of devotees of Lord Venkateswara across the globe as the Tirupati laddus are considered Maha Prasadam and carry a high sentimental value. 

The TDP govt had in June appointed senior IAS officer J Syamala Rao as the new executive  officer of the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD), which manages the temple complex. As part of streamlining measures, an inquiry was ordered into the alleged poor quality, taste and texture of the laddus. TTD constituted an expert committee to look into the quality of the prasadam. Apart from suggesting several measures to TTD to restore the taste and quality, the committee also sent samples of the ghee to NDDB in Gujarat. The lab reports, issued in July, confirmed the presence of foreign fats. TTD returned the ghee stocks supplied by AR Dairy Foods, Dindigul, in Tamil Nadu and blacklisted the contractor. Then, TTD selected Karnataka Milk Federation to supply the ghee