Futuristic Role of Bhartiya Nirdeshak Dravya an Indian Reference Material on Safety and Quality of Food Products

Contamination in food is a matter of global concern as high levels of contaminants can lead to serious health risks for consumers. Protecting the public from the harmfulness of contaminated food is a critical task. Governments throughout the world have strengthened their efforts to regulate food safety through maintaining quality control. For example, The National Institute of Science and Technology (NIST), USA has been proactive through the release of Standard Reference Materials for food analyses to maintain food quality and food safety. Likewise, several other National Metrology Institutes (NMIs) throughout the world such as NIM China, KRISS Korea, NMI Australia have dedicated themselves for the development of Certified Reference Materials to ensure quality and safety of food. In India, as an initiative to boost “Make in India” program and for the development of quality infrastructure of country CSIR-National Physical Laboratory, NMI of India has started working for development of Bhartiya Nirdeshak Dravyas (BNDs) an Indian Reference Material in food sector for maintaining safety and quality of food. Hence, this paper reviews major staple crops worldwide, sources of contaminants in them, their implication on human health, necessity of reference materials, international scenario, efforts of CSIR-NPL in development of food BNDs and its impact on society. Also, other preventive measures to control the contaminants have been discussed and pointed out.