In the last six months, about one-third of MDH’s shipments related to spices were rejected by US Customs. This is why

According to a story published in The Indian Express on Monday, the US customs department has denied 31% of all shipments linked to spices that Mahashian Di Hatti (MDH) Pvt. Ltd. has shipped in the last six months because of a salmonella infection. This rejection rate is twice that of the previous year, which was 15%.

The pattern is consistent with the sales of several MDH and Everest Food Products Pvt Ltd products being suspended in Singapore and Hong Kong. These suspensions were brought about by claims that a carcinogenic chemical was found in spice blends, which has millions of Indian customers concerned about their health.

Nearly one-third of all MDH shipments under the “spices, flavors, and salts” category have been denied by US customs since October of last year, totaling 11 shipments. All MDH export shipments that have been denied since October 2020 have been attributed to salmonella infection, which is the consequence of poor hygiene measures throughout the value chain, according to data that The Express received from the US FDA.

In comparison, Everest has seen a lower rate of rejection—in the current US federal fiscal year, only 0.3% of export shipments were turned down. But the corporation has had difficulties, mostly with regard to labeling infractions. The research states that between the US fiscal years 2021 and 2023, over 10% of all rejected shipments of food intended for human consumption from India fell into the category of “spices, flavors, and salts.” After “miscellaneous food-related items,” spices are the second most denied category, according to this data.

The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) started conducting statewide quality tests for different brands of powdered spices earlier this month in response to the sales ban in Singapore and Hong Kong. Three MDH spice mixes and one Everest spice mix were taken off the market in Hong Kong, while Singapore issued an order to recall the Everest spice mix because it contained significant quantities of ethylene oxide, which might be harmful to human health if inhaled over time.

It was previously reported that between US fiscal years 2020 and 2023, 3,925 shipments of human food exported from India were denied entry at US customs, with 24% of those refusals citing “filthy” or “containing salmonella” as reasons. In spite of this, the survey found that India’s food export rejection rate was comparatively low at 0.15%, surpassing that of China and Mexico.