Released on = March 3, 2007, 8:46 am

Press Release Author = Ms Papita Saha & Ms Kritika Jana

Industry = Environment

Press Release Summary = Natural pigment(BIXIN)from the Bixa seeds & it's application
in different fields such as textiles, 'Gulal' & food Industry.

Press Release Body = Dye is a substance that has affinity to the
substrate to which it is being applied. Such as, textile fibers, foodstuffs &
powder. From archeological evidence, it is seen that in India & in Middle East
dyeing has been carried out for over 5,000 years, which were obtained from animal,
vegetable or mineral origin. The greatest source of this dye was mainly from plant
kingdom; mainly roots, bark, leave & wood. Dye from Bixa (Annatto) seed is one type
of natural dye which can be used as dyeing agent for coloring textile fibers like
cotton, wool, silk & for making colorful 'Gulal' as well as in food industry. Bixin,
the pigment extracted from the red-colored seeds, can be used as coloring agent for
this purpose. It is non-carcinogenic in nature & so does not affect human body or
environment. An attempt is being made in laboratory scale to extract the natural
pigment from the Bixa seeds & it's application in different fields such as textiles,
'Gulal' & food Industry.

Web Site = http://geocities.com/kusumika_project

Contact Details = Papita Saha.
Kolkata
India
email:papitasaha@gmail.com