New Delhi: In a censure to the Food Safety Authority (FSA), the Supreme Court on Thursday said the food safety panels, constituted to examine chemical and pesticide content in fizzy drinks and other edible items, were violative of law since they included representatives of the industry.
The court said that representatives of Pepsi-Cola and Coca-Cola were not independent scientific experts and therefore could not be on the scientific panels, as this would amount to a conflict of interest.
The court made the observation while hearing a petition asking for the disclosure of pesticide content in soft drinks and the potential harmful effects this might have for consumers.
The panels were formed two years ago in February 2009 by the FSA and have since then been unable to detect the exact contents of the food products they have been examining.
