‘Our samples first tested at national labs’: Drama over Tirupati Laddus continue
News Mania Desk/ Piyal Chatterjee / 22nd September 2024
Kannan claims that AR Dairy adheres to stringent quality standards and has an ISO accreditation. He added that there had been no fluctuation in quality in any of the earlier reports, and he advocated for a more open procedure for gathering samples, including filming a video to guarantee accountability.
The remarks coincide with the day that TTD Officer J Shyamala Rao announced at a news conference that samples of ghee provided by A.R. Dairy were submitted for analysis in response to grievances regarding the deteriorating quality of laddus, a common temple offering known as “prasadam.”Days prior, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu said at an NDA legislative party gathering that the previous government, led by YS Jagan Mohan Reddy, had permitted the use of fish oil and animal fat in the manufacture of
The Tamil Nadu-based AR Dairy Food Private Limited was accused of delivering contaminated ghee to the Sri Venkateswara Temple, and a day after the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) filed a lawsuit against the company, the company has questioned the report that served as the basis for the decision.
Friday, Kannan, a quality control officer at AR Dairy Food in Dindigul, rejected the accusations “unsubstantiated” in remarks he made to the media . A day earlier, TTD Executive Officer J Shyamala Rao declared that ghee samples from AR Dairy had been shown to be “highly adulterated.”
“This is the first time that such accusations have been made against us; we have been in operation since 1998,” Kannan stated.
He claims that AR Dairy uses cutting edge technology and operates its own procurement centers to evaluate up to 102 milk quality indicators in 32 seconds. “The milk is rejected right away if it fails any quality tests,” he declared. Additionally, he stated that a four-person expert team from the temple administration had visited AR Dairy’s facilities to evaluate its capacity and quality control procedures before approving the company to supply ghee to TTD.
“Our ghee samples are first tested in national laboratories before being dispatched to TTD. Upon arrival, TTD’s own food safety officer checks the samples again,” Kannan said.
“These allegations, ranging from vegetable oil to animal fat adulteration, are severely damaging to our business. Moreover, the claim that fish oil was added is absurd; fish oil is more expensive than ghee. Any adulteration of this kind would immediately be detectable by smell alone,” Kannan said, adding that the company contributes to a “very small volume” of the total ghee used for TTD’s laddu production.
“We take immense pride in supplying ghee to TTD. For us, it’s not just business; it’s a blessing and honour,” he told the media .
Kannan claims that AR Dairy adheres to stringent quality standards and has an ISO accreditation. He added that there had been no fluctuation in quality in any of the earlier reports, and he advocated for a more open procedure for gathering samples, including filming a video to guarantee accountability.
The remarks coincide with the day that TTD Officer J Shyamala Rao announced at a news conference that samples of ghee provided by A.R. Dairy were submitted for analysis in response to grievances regarding the deteriorating quality of laddus, a common temple offering known as “prasadam.”Days prior, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu said at an NDA legislative party gathering that the previous government, led by YS Jagan Mohan Reddy, had permitted the use of fish oil and animal fat in the manufacture of laddus.
