Consumers will soon be able to test milk for several common adulterants at home with a new colour-change testing kit developed by the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB). The household kit, priced at ₹241, is designed to provide quick screening for adulterants including urea, starch, neutralisers and hydrogen peroxide.
NDDB has launched three milk adulteration detection kits, developed by the organisation and to be manufactured by its wholly owned subsidiary NDDB CALF Ltd. The kits use a colour-based chemical reaction in which a small quantity of milk is mixed with specific reagents, with the resulting colour indicating the presence or absence of the targeted adulterant. Testing takes between one second and five minutes, depending on the test.
The small household kit can detect four adulterants: urea, starch and cereal flours, neutralisers, and hydrogen peroxide. It contains five tests for each adulterant, providing a total of 20 tests, and is priced at ₹241.
A medium-sized kit has been developed for broader testing requirements. It can detect urea, starch, neutralisers, salt and sugar, with 100 tests available for each adulterant, providing 500 tests in total.
The large kit can detect nine adulterants: urea, ammonia fertilisers, nitrate fertilisers, starch and cereal flours, sugar/sucrose, glucose, salt, neutralisers and hydrogen peroxide.
According to an NDDB CALF Ltd official, the kits are designed to be compact, portable and easy to use, with an improved colour-comparison chart to assist users in interpreting results. Each batch will undergo performance testing and carry a QR code that provides access to its batch-verification report. The kits have a stated shelf life of nine months under ambient conditions.
The kits were among four farmer-centric initiatives launched at the NDDB headquarters in Anand by Union Minister for Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying Rajiv Ranjan Singh, also known as Lalan Singh. The Minister called for large-scale implementation and commercialisation of the milk-testing kits and other technologies introduced at the event.
The Minister also emphasised the need to strengthen milk-quality testing at the grassroots level and at dairy collection points. While India is the world's largest milk producer, he noted the need to expand the organised dairy market and strengthen quality assurance for milk and milk products.
NDDB Chairman Meenesh Shah said the initiatives reflected the board's focus on making the dairy sector safer, more efficient, transparent and modern. NDDB is also working with State governments and milk unions to establish new dairy cooperatives and strengthen existing ones under White Revolution 2.0.
The event also saw the launch of 10-gram butter chiplets developed by Mother Dairy, a battery-operated 300-litre mobile milk collection and cooling system developed by NDDB and manufactured by its subsidiary IDMC Ltd, and DARPAN, an integrated document-management system being implemented at NDDB.
The mobile milk collection system is designed to enable direct milk collection in rural areas, including weighing, quality testing and receipt generation. It also incorporates IoT-based monitoring, providing another technology-led approach to improving milk collection and quality control.
The new household testing kit brings basic adulteration screening closer to consumers, while the medium and large kits are positioned for wider testing applications. Together, the initiatives represent a broader push towards strengthening milk-quality monitoring across the dairy supply chain.
Source: Dairynews7x7 21 Sep, 2026 Read full story here
#DairyIndustry #MilkTesting #FoodSafety #NDDB #MilkAdulteration #DairyTechnology #DairyNews7x7
