Thursday June 30, 2005
Is it safe to eat food with ‘kaskas’?KUALA LUMPUR: Is it safe to eat dishes like meat curry and stew with ingredients that include kaskas?
According to Agriculture Department deputy director-general I Datuk Sofian Mohd Salleh, kaskas are poppy seeds, and excessive use of this ingredient in any dish can cause hallucination and addiction.
“The latex of the poppy flower is used to produce opium,” he noted.
He added that opium could be processed further into morphine and heroin.
Scientific research has shown that dishes containing poppy seeds can cause the consumer to test positive for opiates.
Sofian said poppy seeds in the local market were imported from several countries, including India, because the Malaysian climate was not suitable for poppy cultivation.
“Besides, it is unlawful to plant poppy in the country.”
The use of poppy seeds became a hot topic of late after MP for Jasin Datuk Mohd Said Yusof said last week that Indian Muslim restaurants used poppy seeds in their dishes, causing the patrons to become addicted to their food.
Universiti Malaya botanist Prof Dr Mohamed Abdul Majid said poppy seeds had no narcotic properties because the opium-producing fluid in the bud was only present before the seeds were fully formed.
“Opium is the dried latex from unripe seed capsules. Poppy seeds that come from ripe seeds contain no narcotic chemicals,” said Dr Mohamed, who is also the Dean of the Science Faculty at the university.
He said it was safe to consume poppy seeds as its alkaloid content was very low – 50 parts per million.
“One would have to consume at least 1kg of poppy seeds to get high, but that is unlikely as poppy seeds are very bitter in large quantities,” he added.
Dr Mohamed, however, said morphine could still be detected in the urine after heavy poppy seed consumption.
He said there was no experimental evidence to date which proved that poppy seed consumption could lead to addiction.
Poppy seeds are mainly used to produce edible oil but can also be used in making baked products such as bagels and muffins, as thickening agents in curries and sauces, and as seasoning. – Bernama
Post time 26-6-2014 05:27 PM
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