ASTA cleanliness specifications

ASTA, Cleanliness Specifications for Unprocessed Spices, Seeds and Herbs, American Spice Trade Association, Englewood Cliffs, NJ, 1992. 

The ASTA cleanliness specifications (Anon., 1991), the Defect Action Levels (DAL), as set by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the DAL as prescribed by the USFDA for spices (http //www.indianspices. com) for cumin, are presented in Table 11.8. 

Table 11.8. ASTA cleanliness specifications and Defect Action Levels (DAL) prescribed by FDA and USFDA for cumin.

The regulatory status of cumin and cumin oil in the USA is regarded generally as safe, GRAS 2340 and GRAS 2343. The ASTA cleanliness specifications and the DAL as set by the FDA and the DAL as prescribed by the USFDA for spices are described by Anon. (1991) and Potty and Krishnakumar (2001). 

ASTA (2001) Cleanliness Specifications Manual, Method 14.1. American Spice Trade Association, Washington DC, pp. 13-1713. 

The ASTA, FDA and USFDA standards for cleanliness in fennel are given in Table 12.5 and the quality specifications for whole and ground fennel in Table 12.6. 

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