Tirupati Laddu Row: 'Substandard Prasad' Allegation Brewing For A While

The sample of ghee used by Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam (TTD) in preparation of ritual offerings (Naivedyam) to the presiding deity of India’s richest temple, Tirumala Tirupati contained ‘ foreign fat’ including animal fat like fish oil and beef tallow, said the analysis report by the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB)’s Center for Analysis and Learning in Livestock and Food (CALF) located in Anand, Gujarat.

On Saturday morning, the temple body admitted that it had come across substandard ghee and presence of animal fat, supporting the allegations made by Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu on Wednesday. It also said the board was in the process of blacklisting the contractor who supplied 'adulterated' ghee. However, this isn't really a new story.

In 2023, Karnataka Milk Federation’s (KMF) dairy brand opted out of a tender to supply ghee to TTD. They had proposed a higher price due to milk price-hikes, which TTD was not ready to accept. The milk federation argued that reducing prices would result in loss for them.

However, KMF began supplying Nandini ghee to Tirupati within the past month following CM Chandrababu Naidu’s directive to improve the quality of laddus.

Some media reports said that the tender was given to Amul after KMF stepped back. Amid the outrage, Amul in a recent X post stated that they never supplied ghee to TTD.

"This is in reference to some social media posts mentioning that Amul Ghee was being supplied to Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam (TTD). We wish to inform that we have never supplied Amul Ghee to TTD’, read the post.

Among five of the short-listed companies was the Dindigul-based AR Foods, with the lowest bid of Rs 320/litre. 

"We used to supply ghee to TTD till June, July. Then we stopped supplying. We have a legacy of 30 years. We do not do any adulteration with our products”, said AR Dairy spokesperson, in an interview to a Tamil local news channel.

“Of the total quantity procured by TTD, we supplied only 0.1%. Even with our supplies, we have conducted tests and have sent the reports, even ones from FSSAI, to TTD”, she said.

A news report from July 2024 said the tender for ghee supply was given to five companies by TTD. Lab reports conducted on samples show adulteration in ghee procured from a company in Dindigul, Tamil Nadu. The contract with AR Dairy was for 8.5 lakh tonnes of ghee.

However, TTD had procured only 68,000 tonnes of ghee. Of this, 20,000 tonnes of ghee was found adulterated and was sent back to the company.

TTD had blacklisted the contractor for supplying substandard ghee to the trust. Subsequently, in September, a ghee committee appointed by TTD, submitted a report which explained the current quality assurance system along with suggestions. The report also mentioned that these tests are not completely foolproof.

Meanwhile, former Chief Minister and YSRCP president Jagan Mohan Reddy has dared Naidu to prove allegations and warned that if he failed to do so, serious defamation suits would be filed against him for baseless claims and hurting the Hindu sentiments.

Amid the blame game between the political parties, Tirupati, the temple with the richest shrine, has taken centerstage. Around 10 million laddus are sold each month in the temple. It earns  nearly Rs. 500 crore as revenue from the yearly sale of laddus, according to the temple’s annual report on its website.

Ghee, it's noteworthy, usually derived from cow’s or buffalo’s milk, is primarily a dairy product unlike animal fats like tallows from beef and lards from pigs. Animal fats are from adipose tissue, a tissue that stores fat in animal’s bodies. These fats differ from ghee, which is a milk-derivative.