SACCHARINE (ANTI-DUMPING DUTY)

Saccharine: 

• What is it? Saccharin is an artificial, or non-nutritive, sweetener. 
  
  
• History: The substance was first discovered in 1878 by researcher Constantin Fahlberg. Its popularity increased during the 1960s and 1970s among dieters as a result of its ‘calorie-free’ status. 
  
  
• Applications: Saccharine is a compound most commonly used in sugar-substitute sweeteners. It is used to sweeten products such as drinks, candies, cookies, and medicines. 
  
  
• Properties: 
  • It is 200 to 700 times sweeter than sucrose (table sugar), does not raise blood sugar levels and like all non-nutritive sweeteners has no calories. However, it does have a bitter or metallic aftertaste, especially at high concentrations. 
    
    
  • Saccharin is unstable when heated but does not react chemically with other food ingredients, which makes it good for storage. 
    
    
  
  
  
• India’s import from Indonesia: Indonesia, until recently, accounted for a large chunk of India’s saccharine imports. However, imports from Indonesia have declined since then. In the April 2018 to February 2019 period, India imported only 20% of its total saccharine imports from Indonesia. 
  
  
• Recent ban: According to Government of India, saccharine has been exported to India from Indonesia below their normal values and consequently, the Indian domestic industry has suffered a lot.