Considering the wellbeing of customers, hoteliers, owners of restaurants, eateries and snack manufacturers should not use the same oil more than twice as using the oil multiple times in cooking will cause a range of ailments including cancer, experts say.
“If the cooking oil is used just once and sold for making bio-diesel under the Repurpose Used Cooking Oil (RUCO), it will be a win – win situation for all concerned as it will ensure a decent return to the seller of the oil while protecting the health of the consumers from digestive disorders and other serious ailments including cancer,” said experts from EnvoGreen Energy, a private firm authorised by Food Safety and Standards Authority of India for making bio-diesel from used cooking oil. They were talking at an awareness workshop organised here on Friday by Department of Food Safety for hoteliers, owners of restaurants, eateries and the snack manufacturers.
According to the experts, used cooking oil could be sold for making bio-diesel for which Rs. 35 to Rs. 50 per litre was being offered based on the quality of the used cooking oil. After processing the used cooking oil for making bio-diesel, the environment-friendly fuel is sold to oil majors which sell it to the customers through their outlets.
“If the cooking oil becomes bluish ash in colour and generates thick smoke or froth, it should be immediately discarded. It should not be drained in the underground drainage system, instead, the used cooking oil should be sold to the authorised collectors who make bio-diesel,” said the experts.
Repeated use of cooking oil for frying or other purposes would seriously damage liver, cause blood pressure, digestive disorders etc. since it would have high concentration of bad cholesterol and other harmful chemical agents, they said.
Good number of hoteliers, owners of restaurants, eateries and the snack manufacturers participated in the workshop.
District Collector V. Vishnu exhorted the participants to sell the used cooking oil for making another useful product, bio-diesel.
Designated Officer, Food Safety Sasi Deepa, Food Safety Officer A.R. Sankaralingam and others participated.
