Sweet potato, considered good for heart and gut health, is highly prone to adulteration.
A toxic synthetic industrial dye known as Rhodamine B is sometimes added to the sweet potato to boost its colour.
Other than sweet potato, Rhodamine B is also used as the colourant in other food items, such as chilli powder and chilli oil.
A
2021 paper
mentions that because of its toxic nature, Rhodamine B is dangerous if eaten by humans and animals. It can cause irritation to the skin, eyes and respiratory tract.
Recently, the Food and Safety Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) shared an
informative video
to check if sweet potatoes are adulterated.
Here are the steps:
Take a cotton ball and soak it in water or vegetable oil.
Take a sweet potato and rub its outer surface with the cotton ball.
The cotton ball rubbed on an unadulterated sweet potato does not change colour.
The cotton ball rubbed on an adulterated sweet potato turns reddish-violet.
Use this quick and easy test to check the quality of your sweet potato to save yourself from harm.
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