[hang nadim] ‘Teh timbang’ a health hazard.....

Monday January 3, 2011

JELI: The teh timbang or teh sukat, literally measured tea and most liked by the people in Kelantan, can be hazardous to health, according to the Kelantan Health Department.

Its senior principal assistant director (food safety and quality) Ahmad Nadzri Sulaiman said the tea, often used by coffee shops, contained synthetic colouring.

“The tea does not come in labelled packaging and is sold by the measure at sundry shops in the state. It is hazardous to the health of consumers in the long term,” he said yesterday.

Ahmad Nadzri said the sale of tea should adhere to the Food Regulations 1985 which prohibited the addition of colouring.

Anyone found to be selling, importing, using and storing teh timbang was liable to prosecution and faced a maximum fine of RM10,000 or up to two years in jail upon conviction, he said.

Ahmad Nadzri said the department’s records showed that between January and October last year, 1,858kg of teh timbang valued at RM22,296 were seized in operations conducted by the department.

Restaurant operator Meriyam Sholah, 45, said she was unaware of the danger of the tea and had used it for the past 10 years.

She said the tea was cheaper than that which came in sachets, and that was vital for her business.

Puad Zainudin, 50, said he had heard about the hazard but consumed the tea, nevertheless.

“I buy the tea at RM12 per kilo. Another variety sells at RM7 per kilo, but lacks the aroma,” he said. – Bernama