Irradiation to decontaminate herbs and spices 63
cooked food can significantly increase its microbial load and lead to spoilage, particularly
of canned food. The pathogens may grow and increase in number when the spice is
added to food and if the food is allowed to incubate. Thus the presence of microorganisms
in spices could severely affect not only the keeping quality of food but also increase
the risk of human foodborne illnesses. The loss of quality and marketability of stored
spices can result in huge economic losses.
3.2.1 Quality standards
Quality has been given the utmost importance by both exporting and importing
countries. In India, The Export (Quality Control & Inspection) Act 1963 was amended
in 1984 to streamline inspection and testing procedures before export. The Bureau of
Indian Standards in collaboration with the International Standards Organization has
laid down standards for spices. However, it is not always that the export consignments
conform to the standards of quality and quarantine. Leading importing countries have
stringent quality control inspection. Exceeding permitted defect levels could invite
stringent punishment in the form of rejection of the consignment or even black listing
of the export house. The microbial standards for spices proposed by the ICMF are
shown in Table 3.6.
Culinary practices in India, usually adding spices before or at the time of cooking,
may serve as safeguards against poor microbiological quality of spices for home
consumers. However, infested and molded spices are pushed in as ingredients of
powders and condiments. Besides being contaminated with the excreta and body
parts of insect pests, these spices may carry heat resistant mycotoxins such as aflatoxin.
Storage insects cause major losses to farmers as well as traders. Very often traders
resort to unethical practices by using banned chemicals to store their spices for
Ta ble 3.5 Predominant storage insects found in Indian spices
Insect Whole spices Ground spices
Chili Turmeric Ginger Cardamom Coriander Chili Turmeric CorianderLasioderma ++ + – – + + –
serricorne
Oryzaephilus +– – – – + – –
surinamensis
Sitophilus +– – – – + – –
cerealella
Tribolium ++ + + + + + +
castaneum
Ta ble 3.6 Recommended microbiological specifications for spices
Test Limits/g
NCm MSPC 5 2 10,000 1000,000
Molds 5 2 100 10,000
E. coli 5210 1,000
From N samples analyzed; C samples may exceed; m but none may exceed; M (ICMF, 1974).