Plastic rice is a hoax, say mill owners

The forum’s secretary Dr AC Mohan said the term ‘plastic rice’ first surfaced in China in 2010, in what was dubbed as the Wuchang rice scandal. 

“The Chinese authorities unearthed a scam in which a particular brand promoted ordinary rice made from ‘sweet potatoes’ by treating it with ‘resin’ as premium Wuchang rice besides adding artificial flavours to it”, he explained. However, the doctors say that at least 60 types of plastic granules were being manufactured. 

“The chemical quality of plastic as such would melt on heating, and cannot be cooked like rice.” “The human digestive system does not have the necessary acid or alkali to digest plastic, which makes its consumption impossible. The market price of raw plastic granules is Rs 83 a kg, which makes it a costly affair to be used as an adulterant,” he added. 

The forum appealed to the public not to fall prey to the videos which were deliberately being circulated to spread panic. The forum which claimed that the ‘plastic rice’ was not prevalent anywhere in India, thanked Food Minister R Kamaraj for his announcement in this line that there was no ‘plastic rice’ in state. 

The forum thanked Food Safety department and Health department for taking samples from various rice mills, and the rice mill owners for their cooperation for the tests to allay the fears of consumers.