THIS refers to poisonous milk being sold by milkmen in Qasimabad, Hyderabad. There are hundreds of milk shops, only a few are registered.

These milk sellers add washing powder, shampoo, detergent and urea to increase the quantity and thickness of milk. Formaldehyde is also being used to preserve milk. This is a chemical consisting of hydrogen, oxygen and carbon. It is a carcinogenic agent and is also used in cosmetic products and to preserve human and animal bodies from decay.

To make matters worse, dairy farmers administer oxytocin injections to animals for increasing the milk yield by up to 20 to 30 per cent.

In fact, Pakistan is the fifth largest producer of milk in the world with an annual production of 28 billion litres.

Medical experts believe that this adulterated milk is highly hazardous to human health and leads to kidney failure, hepatitis, heart diseases, cancer, stomach tumour, asthma, nausea, pneumonia and allergic reactions.

Like the Punjab Food Authority, the Sindh Food Authority and livestock department should collect samples of milk from various Hyderabad milk shops for testing and take strict action against sellers found selling poisonous milk.

Naimatullah Gadhi
Khairpur Mir’s

Published in Dawn, September 19th, 2019