Saransh Goila reveals dirty secrets of adulterated chicken, admits injecting birds with growth hormones is wrong: ‘As a consumer, you should…’

Also read – Butter chicken: A tale of irresistible flavour, culinary rivalry, and fight for legacy

He said that alternatives to meat should be entertained, as the planet can only take so much pressure. “We add pressure on the supply chain, we add pressure on the farmers, we add pressure on animal husbandry. Because we want everything quicker, we end up injecting hormones to manipulate the growth of a chicken so that it can go on the market. In this day and age, if you want pesticide-free food, hormone-free food, then you have to spend two or three times more. Most of our ailments are a result of this. Air, water, food, nothing is clean,” he said.

Noting the importance of being an aware consumer, he continued, “In the future, if we want to replace chicken with a lab-grown protein or any other alternative, we should all be open to the idea. But, in the process, we shouldn’t repeat the same mistakes to grow that industry… The industry is becoming very strict, which means that there are government policies… It’s already happening. You have to announce on your label if you are giving too many antibiotics to chickens, or too many hormones. As a consumer, you should read labels. No meat production unit can get away with it any more.”

He concluded, “Antibiotics will always be needed for chicken production, because what happens when one chicken falls sick? All of them fall sick. Over-feeding is where the problem is. Using growth hormones is wrong.”

Some weeks ago, a food influencer posted a video alleging that Gauri Khan’s restaurant uses fake paneer in their dishes. He attempted an iodine test on a dish, and claimed to have proven the paneer’s impurity. The restaurant responded to the allegations, and said in a statement, “The iodine test reflects the presence of starch, not the authenticity of the paneer. As the dish contains soy-based ingredients, this reaction is expected. We stand by the purity of our paneer and the integrity of our ingredients at Torii.”

Saransh Goila is the co-founder of the Goila Butter Chicken restaurant chain. He also appeared on MasterChef Australia, where he presented contestants with a pressure test to replicate his butter chicken recipe. He said that the show greatly impacted both his brand and his popularity.