Fake Paneer on Our Plates – A Silent Health Crisis

The words from a concerned citizen, shared as a “squirrel-like effort” to raise public consciousness, ring with a powerful and unsettling truth: much of the paneer we consume today is fake. From the bustling highway dhaba to the polished dining rooms of a five-star hotel, an unsettlingly large portion of our beloved paneer dishes may not be made from milk at all, but from a concoction of cheaper, and often dangerous, ingredients. This isn’t just an issue of taste; it’s a silent public health crisis hiding in plain sight.

The author of the viral column makes a compelling case using simple arithmetic. A single kilogram of genuine paneer, made from five litres of full-cream milk, costs a minimum of ₹350 just for the raw ingredients. Yet, across the country, we are served paneer momos for ₹30 and purchase paneer at markets for prices as low as ₹200-250 per kg. The numbers simply do not add up. The difference, the author argues, is filled by adulterated products.

These “analogue” paneers, as they are known, are not made from milk, but from a mix of milk powder, palm oil, vegetable fat, arrowroot, and stabilizers. Even more alarmingly, the author points to a lower grade of paneer concocted from urea, detergent, and maida, sold in cheap momos and burgers. These are not merely food substitutes; they are a direct assault on public health, with ingredients like urea known to severely damage the kidneys and liver.

The scale of the problem is staggering. The author notes that India’s daily milk production of 64 crore litres can only yield approximately 1.2 crore kilograms of paneer. Yet, the country’s daily consumption of paneer is estimated to be over 1.5 crore kilograms. The deficit is a stark indictment of the widespread food fraud that is now an open secret.

The author’s call for consumer vigilance is a necessary wake-up call. We must question the source of our food and demand transparency from vendors. The anecdote of a restaurant refusing to show a piece of raw paneer speaks volumes. It’s a sad state of affairs when a customer asking for a basic food sample is met with suspicion, or worse, a refusal to serve.

While the government has made efforts to crack down on food adulteration, the current laws seem to fall short. The penalties are often a small fine, a slap on the wrist for a crime that, as the author points out, causes “millions of indirect deaths.” It is high time that our legal system holds these perpetrators responsible for the devastating health consequences of their actions.

Until a more robust system is in place, the author’s message remains clear: the only real defense we have is awareness. We must become more conscious of what we are putting into our bodies and demand better from those who feed us.