Indian J Dairy Sci 72(4): 441-444 441 SHORT COMMUNICATION A simple rapid technique for detection of palm oil in ghee Akshay Ramani, Tanmay Hazra, MP Parmar, Rohit G Sindhav and VM Ramani Akshay Ramani, Tanmay Hazra(), MP Parmar, Rohit G Sindhav and VM Ramani College of Dairy Science, Kamdhenu University, Amreli, Gujarat, India Email: tanmayhazra08@gmail.com Received: 20 April 2019 / Accepted: 13 May 2019 / Published online: 27 August 2019 Indian Dairy Association (India) 2019 © Abstract: The detection of palm oil adulteration in ghee continues to be a challenge for the dairy industry as well as food testing laboratories. Recently, various sophisticated instrument based protocols have been developed to detect a low level of vegetable oil in ghee but applications of those techniques in Indian condition is still a challenge, due to lack of modern instrument equipped food forensic lab facilities. Hence simple and rapid tests are very much essential to ascertain the quality of ghee. In the present investigation, a rapid chromogenic test based methodology has been standardized to detect palm oil in ghee. This standardized protocol did not show any false positive results in the genuine ghee samples. Adulteration of ghee with palm oil at the 5% level could be detected using the standardized chromogenic test. The protocol standardized is rapid and convenient to use. Keywords: Adulteration Chromogenic test, Ghee, Palm oil Food is the fuel of human civilization, so choice of food is directly concern to lifestyle, culture, religion and health for the modern civilization. Milk and dairy products has an integral relation with the human food culture. Milk is almost a complete food that provide almost all nutrients not only to the children but also old aged person. India is the leading milk producing country in the world and milk and dairy products plays equally an essential role on the Indian economic growth. Not only fluid milk processing but also manufacturing of different milk products like ghee, butter, paneer and sweets are the key areas where organized and un- organized dairy entrepreneurs are getting major economical upliftment that directly involved in the growth of the country’s economical structure. Milk lipid or fat that is a rich source of different bio active components, therefore it is supposed to be one of the costliest edible fat or one of the costliest component in dairy industry (Pereira et al. 2019). However, clarified milk fat or ghee is the second largest dairy product and almost 35% of the milk is converted into the ghee in Indian sub-continent (Hazra et al. 2017a). India produces 900,000 tonnes of marketed ghee, valued at Rs 85,000 million (Gandhi et al. 2018). As clarified milk fat; the ghee is a rich source of different bio active components including different fat soluble vitamins, essential fatty acids etc. The supremacy of ghee is not only acknowledged in Indian market only but also in developed country like USA (Wasnik et al. 2019). Food adulteration is a an alarming threat to all over the world however the problem getting a serious dimension where there is a challenge between the physical supply and the market demand for a food item/items. Hence the food items like milk or milk products are always tense to be adulterated by unscrupulous traders for earning more money. Recently a report by FSSAI that 68% milk in India is substandard (Anonymous, 2018). The situation getting worst for premium quality of dairy products like ghee. The ghee production level varies from region to region, 57% in northern region, 9.5% in eastern, 23.5% in western and 10% in southern region (Aneja et al. 2002). The integral relation of ghee with Indian culinary as well as religion culture and uneven production of ghee; trends this premium product to be adulterated with cheaper quality of oils (vegetable oil) and fats. Recent scientific report stated that problem of ghee adulteration getting a serious concern for food law enforcement agencies, as crooks involved in the business of ghee production are using designed oils/ fats with or such oil that has almost same fatty acids profile of milk fat or ghee, so that BR reading at 40°C, RM value and Polenske value could be easily manipulated (Sharma and Pathania, 2019). Previously different techniques been reported based on image analysis (Wasnik et al. 2019 and Wasnik et al. 2017) Triglyceride analysis (Hazra et al. 2018 and Sharma et al. 2017), https://doi.org/10.33785/IJDS.2019.v72i04.015