LIFESTYLE

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The UK Guild of Bangladeshi Restaurateurs says chicken tikka masala may soon be a thing of the past.

They say over-eager trading standards departments are cracking down on the additives used to create bright colour customers expect. The guild says the threat of prosecution may lead to many restaurants deciding not to sell the dish.

Enam Ali, chairman of the 2,500 member industry body, said restaurateurs are forced to use close to the legal limit of additives to create the distinctive bright colour customers expect.

Chicken tikka masala is among the dishes using the largest amounts of artificial colourings - mainly tartrazine and Sunset Yellow.

A study by analytical chemists Eurofins Scientific in July found that 46% of tikka masala dishes in London curry houses contained high levels of the two colourings, plus ponceau 4R.

The Guild of Bangladeshi Restaurateurs is calling for trading standards to educate curry eaters, rather than prosecute guild members who breach the legal limit.

The maximum fine for breaching colouring regulations is £5,000. (Ananova)

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