![\"Analogue](\"https:\/\/static.toiimg.com\/thumb\/msid-133991346,imgsize-242046,width-400,height-225,resizemode-75\/synthetic-paneer-production-continues-in-gondola-village-despite-a-statewide-ban.jpg\" "\\"Synthetic")
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nStanding outside a closed gate that looks like the entrance to a foundry, the man who identifies himself as Imran asks what we want.\u201cPaneer,\u201d we say. \u201cDo you take large orders?\u201d\u201cAny quantity,\u201d he replies. \u201cWe supply to many places in Delhi, Gurgaon and Faridabad. Within a day, we can supply as much paneer as required to Chandigarh.\u201dImran wasn\u2019t exaggerating. There would be few lives in Delhi-NCR and the vast agglomeration of towns and villages around it that the foundry-like units operating in a cluster here \u2013 Gondola village in Nuh\u2019s Punahana block \u2013 would not have touched. Their chief produce \u2013 synthetic paneer (also analogue or non-dairy) is cheap, lasts a long time, and needs no dairy.<\/p>\n Synthetic paneer floods Delhi-NCR markets<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Daily, synthetic paneer is delivered in bulk to distributors, mandis, and catering kitchens associated with banquet halls. On the plate, it comes packed into tikkas and stuffed in patties, kulchas, rolls and parathas, and in curries that are lapped up in massive quantities.Synthetic paneer (also analogue or non-dairy) is everywhere. Gondola is among its chief contributors. Last month, Haryana govt banned all forms of non-dairy paneer after finding their presence in a large number of samples tested at labs. But the units that bulk-produce paneer doppelgangers continue to churn out massive batches as orders flow in. The only difference? Gates are shut, and there\u2019s a watch posted outside, just in case a nosy visitor drops by.\u201cFood safety teams are active in the area,\u201d says Imran. At another unit in Punahana city, workers turned abusive when we inquired about paneer production.Gondola specialises in all forms of synthetic paneer, like skimmed milk with palm oil and vegetable fats and soya paste treated mixed milk solids. Over the years, demand for cheap paneer has seen manufacturing units proliferate beyond a single cluster to Katpuri, Punahana city, Bara Bazidpur in Pinangwan, Raniyala and Bodi Kothi in Ferozepur Jhirka and Sheikhpur in Nagina, among other places.They produce quickly, and evidently, do whatever it takes to make their product look the best. \u201cDuring recent raids on paneer manufacturing units in Punahana, food safety officials found buckets of slaked lime (chuna), which were being used to artificially whiten synthetic paneer,\u201d said a food department source. A ballpark estimate of how much paneer the Gondola belt sends out daily, according to various officials and distributors, these correspondents spoke to, is around 10,000-12,000 kg.Haryana food safety commissioner Manoj Kumar has issued a one-year statewide prohibition under Section 30(2)(a) of Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, covering analogue or non-dairy paneer, and barring its preparation using milk powder or vegetable oil. Officials have been instructed to seize stocks and initiate criminal prosecution under the FSS Act.Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh and Gujarat, too, have banned synthetic paneer for a year. Sale and production of analogue paneer is not illegal in India as long as it is correctly labelled, but concerns about poor standards and the impact on health have led to a rethink.The state\u2019s latest testing data underlines the scale of the problem: of 285 paneer samples tested between April 1, 2025 and March 31, 2026, 200 failed to meet standards. In many samples, the Butyrorefractometer (which measures purity) readings and iodine values were significantly beyond limits, showing replacement of natural milk fat with non-milk vegetable fats.Food delivery aggregator platforms are acting too. On Aug 31, Zomato announced a zero-tolerance policy on analogue dishes across its platform. It said restaurant partners have been asked to transition to natural dairy products, remove analogue-dairy items where an immediate switch isn\u2019t feasible, and review supplier product labels and ingredient declarations to ensure accurate menu representation.\u201cThirteen paneer dairies have been proceeded against by the Nuh regional office. Out of these, three units have already been closed, closure orders have been received against five units, four units are presently under show cause notice, and closure recommendation against one sent to head office,\u201d Nuh deputy commissioner Akhil Pilani said.Who Are The Buyers?<\/span>A supplier described an organised distribution network connecting Nuh\u2019s manufacturing units with Delhi-NCR\u2019s catering and food businesses. Vehicles, he said, leave early morning carrying \u201cfreshly prepared synthetic paneer\u201d to Delhi, Gurgaon and surrounding areas. The economics make the case for synthetic paneer. A commercial buyer paying Rs 340 for a kilogram of full-cream paneer could instead procure the cheapest variety (soya paste and vegetable oils, perhaps with a chuna whitener) for Rs 120-150. For a catering order of 1,000kg, this is a savings of Rs 2 lakh.Sources told TOI synthetic paneer is delivered to distributors at Khandsa Mandi, Subzi Mandi on Gurdwara Road, and Anaj Mandi in Gurgaon and at Janakpuri, Uttam Nagar, and in the east in Delhi, mostly for banquet halls, cloud kitchens and local dairy shops. Hapur, Palwal and Bhiwadi are other centres that produce synthetic paneer for supply to Delhi-NCR.Chef Sunnyy Vyas, also known as Brown Chef India, said texture and taste can offer clues, though they\u2019re no substitute for lab testing. \u201cAfter spending years in kitchens, you develop an instinct with ingredients,\u201d he said. Good, fresh paneer should break softly and crumble rather than stretch like cheese or rubber, he explained \u2014 it typically has a soft, slightly grainy, milky feel and a fresh, milky flavour, whereas analogue products can feel unusually smooth, tight or rubbery, and taste more elastic or processed.But he cautioned this isn\u2019t foolproof. \u201cSome products are made very well and can be difficult to identify without checking the ingredients or doing a proper test.\u201d His message for restaurants using analogue products was simple \u2014 transparency. \u201cIf they\u2019re using analogue paneer, it should be mentioned clearly on the menu, preferably with the ingredients or what it is made from in brackets.\u201dIs There A Health Impact?<\/span>Paediatric endocrinologist Dr Ganesh Jevalikar said the concern goes beyond analogue paneer simply being different from the conventional dairy product. \u201cPaneer is commonly consumed as an important source of protein, particularly by vegetarians, but analogue paneer can be deficient in protein because its preparation is fundamentally different and may rely on vegetable fats, palm oil, starches and emulsifiers,\u201d he said.Regular consumption of products high in saturated fat, he added, could contribute to weight gain, obesity and increased LDL cholesterol, with longer-term risks including insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes, particularly when eaten frequently. \u201cThe bigger issue is that a low-cost substitute should not be mistaken for a nutritionally equivalent food.\u201dSurabhi Sharma, clinical nutritionist and dietetics at Max Hospital, Gurgaon, said: \u201cThe health impact depends on the formulation, serving size and frequency of consumption. Some analogue products can be higher in saturated fat, refined starch, calories and sodium, and lower in protein and calcium than regular dairy paneer. Consistently consuming such foods may therefore result in poorer overall nutrition. There is no scientific proof that properly controlled analogue paneer causes hormonal imbalance, so there is no need for unnecessary panic.\u201dManpreet Singh, honorary treasurer of National Restaurant Association of India, said good restaurants don\u2019t serve analogue paneer because \u201cthat\u2019s against the grain of the business\u201d. \u201cWe had a talk organized by FSSAI<\/a> a few days ago to teach restaurant owners how to maintain standards. Analogue paneer was also discussed, and according to law, you have to state it is analogue. When you\u2019re a decent restaurant, you are charging a particular price. When you\u2019re selling something for Rs 600, you don\u2019t want to save that Rs 50.\u201d<\/div>\n Synthetic paneer production continues in Gondola village despite a statewide ban. Standing outside a closed gate that looks like the entrance to a foundry, the man who identifies himself as Imran asks what we want.\u201cPaneer,\u201d we say. \u201cDo you take large orders?\u201d\u201cAny quantity,\u201d he replies. \u201cWe supply to many places in Delhi, Gurgaon and Faridabad. 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Standing outside a closed gate that looks like the entrance to a foundry, the man who identifies himself as Imran asks what we want.\u201cPaneer,\u201d we say. \u201cDo you take large orders?\u201d\u201cAny quantity,\u201d he replies. \u201cWe supply to many places in Delhi, Gurgaon and Faridabad. 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