Tainted Trust Behind White Lies

Jun 7 , 2025
By Eden Sahle

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Milk has long symbolized nourishment, growth especially for young children. In many families, including mine, it is more than a dietary staple; it is a cornerstone of early childhood nutrition. So, when my husband and I recently transitioned our daughter from breastmilk to pasteurized cow’s milk, we did so with trust. Trust in the product, the manufacturers, and the system meant to guarantee its safety.

But what happens when that trust is misplaced? What if the milk meant to nourish quietly harbours substances that can cause lasting health damage?

At 15 months, like many parents, we turned to pasteurized cow’s milk. We avoided raw milk because of well-known bacterial contamination risks. We believed pasteurized milk was the safer choice. It became a daily part of our home, for drinking, cooking, and baking. That confidence shattered when reports revealed milk adulteration with dangerous chemicals like formalin and hydrogen peroxide is not just real but rampant in some supply chains.

Formalin, a preservative, and disinfectant primarily used in labs and mortuaries, is not something anyone expects in a child’s cup. Hydrogen peroxide, commonly used as a disinfectant, should have no place in food. Yet these chemicals are reportedly used to extend shelf life in unrefrigerated milk or to mask spoilage. The implications are fatal.

This crisis hits close to home. Years ago, through a friend, I visited a well-known milk processing company in a regional state. The shiny exterior and solid branding hid an alarming reality.

The company sourced milk from their own local and imported cows but not enough to meet daily demand. Local farmers supplied the rest. But these farmers transported milk in discoloured, often unclean nickel containers, unfit for food handling. The milk was poured directly into pasteurizers, no lab testing, no quality control, no microbiological screening.

What shocked me most was staff openly dumping 50 kilograms of starch into the milk to “thicken” it, because farmers often diluted it with water. This was a large-scale commercial dairy company operating without even basic lab testing.

If this is standard for a top-tier supplier, what about others?

The blame does not rest solely on farmers, says a quality control expert from the Ethiopian Food and Drug Authority (EFDA). Many farmers operate in rural areas without electricity or cold chain infrastructure. Milk spoils quickly in hot climates. To salvage income, some use chemical preservatives, not out of malice, but due to systemic failures: lack of tools, knowledge, and support.

The result? Chemical-laced milk that reaches the market and our homes. The problem extends beyond milk to cheese, yogurt, and other dairy products.

A 2023 study titled “Quality Assessment of Raw and Pasteurized Milk in Gondar,” published in Heliyon, analysed 90 milk samples. It found formalin and hydrogen peroxide in 50pc of pasteurized and 7.7pc of raw milk samples, both with serious health risks.

These findings reveal more than contamination; they expose systemic lapses in oversight and enforcement. The study underscores the urgent need for tighter food safety regulation and consistent monitoring across Ethiopia’s dairy industry.

The most troubling part is not just the adulteration that has gone on for years, it is the lack of regular oversight. Formalin, a restricted chemical used to preserve dead tissue, is accessible without authorization. Its use in milk, a drink for children, is beyond comprehension.

What are the authorities doing? Where is regulation? Inspections? Accountability?

Occasional press releases and raids are not enough. Food safety is a continuous, non-negotiable responsibility. The public should not have to guess if a product is safe, that’s the system’s job. We need a shift from reaction to prevention.

Milk must be tested at the source, at every collection centre, not just supermarkets. Farmers need certification, training in hygienic handling, and market support. Educate, equip, and empower them. Large manufacturers should help low-income farmers with storage and preservation facilities.

Chemical sales must be strictly regulated. Authorities should monitor and track these chemicals rigorously. Transparent traceability systems should track milk from farm to shelf. Penalties must be enforced for manufacturers and individuals guilty of adulteration.

Until accountability is restored, consumer trust will erode.

Food safety is about trust. Parents trust that what they give their children is safe. That trust assumes functioning systems ensuring safety. When systems fail for years, every household feels the consequences.

Adulterated milk is not just food fraud; it is a public health crisis. Medical experts link prolonged formalin exposure to respiratory issues, gastrointestinal problems, and cancer. Hydrogen peroxide can cause stomach irritation and internal damage. These are not theoretical risks but real and affect the most vulnerable: children.

Rebuilding trust will take time. Once shaken, it is not easily restored, especially when children’s health is at stake. Families deserve confidence in what they put on the table. That confidence requires accountability, strict safety enforcement, and transparency at every supply chain step.

For our family, the breaking point came quickly. We stopped buying milk from the company I visited and many others. But the deeper problem remains trust is broken. Even premium brands source from networks of small farmers, often without proper refrigeration or oversight.

We switched to NIDO full cream powdered milk. It was not perfect, we knew the sodium content, but between a bit of sodium and potentially cancer-causing preservatives, the choice was clear: better an imperfect but safe option than a hidden risk.

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PUBLISHED ON Jun 07,2025 [ VOL 26 , NO 1310]

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