• Sindh Food Authority claims 71 of 127 samples laced with detergent, salt, sugar, or watered down
• Commissioner orders crackdown on milk sellers
• Dairy farmers reject findings, demand Rs50 per litre price hike

KARACHI: While dairy farmers want a massive increase in the per-litre milk price, the city administration on Monday made public the disturbing findings of a recent exercise to check the quality of milk available in the city, announcing that over 55 per cent of the samples — 71 out of 127 — were found to be laced with harmful chemicals posing significant health risks to consumers.

Officials said that the Sindh Food Authority (SFA) had recently obtained 127 milk samples from as many shops across the city and sent them to a food testing laboratory.

They said that as many as 15 samples were found laced with detergent and 19 others with added water. Besides, they said that 22 samples of fresh milk contained salt and 12 others sugar.

Explaining the nature of the chemicals, the officials said that detergent was added to milk to deceive consumers by creating a false appearance of quality and increasing its perceived thickness and frothiness.

They said that the fraudulent practice was common in the city and had serious health consequences, as detergents are harsh cleaning chemicals that could cause irritation, gastrointestinal issues, and long-term damage to organs such as the kidneys and liver.

They said that the widespread adulteration posed significant health risks to consumers and prompted the authorities to launch an immediate crackdown on vendors and shops selling milk laced with harmful chemicals and added water.

Details collated from the SFA revealed that out of 43 fresh milk samples collected in South district, 22 were found adulterated.

Similarly, in Malir, 15 out of 20 samples were adulterated; in East, 7 out of 16; in Keamari, 7 out of 13; in West, 4 out of 7; in Central, 2 out of 12; and in Korangi, 14 out of 16 samples were found adulterated.

Crackdown launched

The officials said that the administration on Monday launched a massive crackdown on fresh milk vendors and shops, as a staggering 55pc of samples tested positive for adulteration and contamination.

They said that a high-level meeting chaired by Karachi Commissioner Syed Hassan Naqvi at his office, and attended among others by officials of the SFA, decided to gear up efforts to contain the sale of adulterated fresh milk in the city on an emergency basis.

The officials said that the commissioner had directed all deputy commissioners to take immediate and strict action against those involved in selling adulterated milk in the city.

They said that so far at least four milk shops had been sealed, while the action was still in progress.

Dairy farmers reject findings

The crackdown coincided with the demand of dairy farmers for an immediate increase of Rs50 per litre in milk prices in view of widespread damage from recent flooding in Sindh and Punjab.

They also warned of protests outside the Chief Minister’s House if a new price notification was not issued by Oct 1.

According to Dairy Farmers Association Vice President Chaudhry Farooq, essential feed such as straw is no longer reaching Karachi due to flooding in rural areas, and the cost of available fodder has more than doubled.

Spokesperson for the All Karachi Milk Retailers Welfare Association, Waheed Gaddi, rejected the SFA’s claims regarding the sampling and testing of milk and said that the whole proceedings were an eye-wash.

Talking to Dawn, he said that food inspectors from the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation used to collect milk samples in three bottles, each containing a quarter of a litre, and add chemicals before sealing them in the vendor’s presence. “The vendor was given one bottle for potential re-testing to challenge the findings,” he added.

It may be recalled that in early May, the SFA had claimed that the milk and tea leaves used by almost every tea shop and stall across the city had been found to be alarmingly contaminated with harmful chemicals and substances.

According to the SFA, 90pc of milk samples collected in May in different areas were found adulterated and contaminated with chemicals and added water.

As per the SFA, it had inspected as many as 127 tea shops and stalls in different parts of Karachi to collect samples of the milk and tea.

Published in Dawn, September 30th, 2025