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23 million litres of milk made with detergent, palm oil busted in Maharashtra scam probe
The accused allegedly mixed detergent powder, palm oil and low-grade chemical additives with milk to boost its fat content. The milk adulteration case happened in Dharashiv
- PUBLISHED: Tue 14 Jul 2026, 5:57 PM UPDATED: Tue 14 Jul 2026, 5:59 PM
Authorities in Maharashtra have uncovered a major milk adulteration racket in which more than 230,000kgs of low-quality milk powder were allegedly used over the past six months in one of the state's most underdeveloped regions.
The accused allegedly mixed detergent powder, palm oil and low-grade chemical additives with the milk to boost its fat content.
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The milk adulteration case surfaced in Dharashiv (formerly Osmanabad), a district in the backward Marathwada region of the state. The accused mixed 10 litres of synthetic milk into 100 litres of pure milk, adulterating over 23 million litres.
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Medical experts warned that continuous consumption of the chemical-laden milk would damage the liver, kidneys, and the digestive system and could be life-threatening for pregnant women, the elderly and children.
“Milk is not merely a food product; it is a nutritional foundation for millions of children, mothers, patients and senior citizens,” Tukaram Mundhe, the newly-appointed Food and Drug Administration (FDA) director told the media.
“Adulterating milk amounts to playing with public health. Such practices will not be tolerated in Maharashtra. We have seen a decrease in supply of milk and paneer since we started the action," he added.
Mundhe said the FDA would continue with the action, cracking down on units not adhering to the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) norms.
The FDA would also step up inspection drives during the festive season including Ganesh Chaturthi, Navratri, Diwali and Holi, when demand for dairy products soars and adulterators take advantage of it.
In Febrfuary, the FSSAI had exposed another synthetic milk producing unit in Sabarkantha district in Gujarat. The unit used a combination of detergent, urea, caustic soda, whey, refined palm and soybean oil, and skimmed milk powder to manufacture ‘synthetic milk’. The unit had been operating for five years.
Similar raids have happened in the past in Delhi and the National Capital Region (NCR), Haryana, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh and other states across the country.
