Some of the safety concerns are even higher in the case of non-vegetarian food. The heavy use of antibiotics in poultry feed has been a big concern in recent times but in addition we should also look at the conditions in which a lot of birds and animals are kept.

Chickens are placed so close to each other that they cannot move, and their beaks are cut off to prevent them from pecking each other. Animals that are scrupulously clean by nature are forced to remain for long hours in their own excreta.

In the reckless search for cheap sources of high protein feed, animals are sometimes given feed based on their own waste and the meat of their own species.

The spread of the mad cow disease some years back is one indication of how this can be ruinous for animals on a vast scale and can pose extreme risks for human beings who consumed the meat or other products of these animals.

Cows are routinely given oxytocin injections to pull out even that milk which they are not ready to yield, causing them a lot of pain and harming their health. At the same time milk obtained in this way harms the health of human beings who consume it.

Many water sources have become highly polluted in dangerous ways. On the one hand this has endangered fish on a vast scale and on the other hand fish obtained from these sources can be harmful for human health.

Many risks of nutrition and safety laws are particularly severe in the case of women and children. Due to a multiplicity of causes junk food is increasingly replacing freshly cooked wholesome food. While this is happening in various income groups the impact can be more serious in economically poor households where in any case there is a shortage of nutritious food.

Limited income badly needed for nutritious food is increasingly spent on cola drinks, cheap snacks and sweets. Some of these snacks and sweets are known to have excessive quantity of salt and white sugar which can lead to serious health problems over a period of time.

Replacement of breast feeding by infant milk formulas is also taking place in various income groups but is likely to prove most harmful amongst weaker sections. Proliferation of junk food deprives pregnant and lactating mothers of badly needed nutritious food.

Tobacco and alcohol are two of the most harmful intakes of human beings. The World Health Report of the WHO has indicted tobacco smoking as one of the prominent avoidable causes of disease and death. Tobacco related deaths primarily from lung cancer and heart disease already add up to 3 million a year.

Passive exposure to tobacco smoking is also a serious risk. Chewable tobacco mixed with other harmful edibles is an increasing risk for more and more people in India.

According to the WHO status report on health and alcohol, in 2012 about 3.3 million net deaths or 5.9 per cent of all global deaths were attributable to alcohol consumption and 5.1 per cent of the global disease and injuries are attributable to consumption of alcohol. The same report has pointed out that the harmful use of alcohol is a component cause of more than 200 diseases and injury conditions.

The risks for most intakes of human beings are increased further by large scale adulteration practices. Shocking cases of adulteration by harmful substances have come to light from time to time which are likely to have resulted in many serious health problems.

While the above analysis of food safety and health hazards has been presented mainly in the context of the health impacts on human beings, most of these concerns are very serious also in the context of endangering the life of other forms of life including animals, birds, insects, amphibians, aquatic life etc. For example, a lot of evidence is available on the harmful impact of proliferation of chemical pesticides, weedicides etc. on birds and insects.

Similarly, several studies on GM crops and foods have pointed out the grave risks that exist for many animals, birds and insects. When the food system starts becoming poisonous then the health and safety of all forms of life is threatened.

These highly worrying trends towards endangering of food safety and loss of nutrition value should wake us to the urgent need for protecting the safety of our food system.

The rush for short term profits in the need to capture markets has unfortunately led to the neglect of most important considerations of protecting safety and nutrition value of our foods.

Sadly, the voices of reason and rationality have been pushed aside by the more powerful shouts of greed and profit. It is time to correct this serious imbalance before it is too late. We need to act now to protect the safety of our food systems and also to protect the food safety of future generations.

Concluded