FSSAI Recommends Food E-Commerce Platforms to Categorize Their Products Rightly

FSSAI recently issued an order stating the importance of correctly categorizing and labeling all food products before listing and selling them on Food E-Commerce platforms.

The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India has recommended all E-Commerce FBOs (Food Business Operators) to ensure that their products are categorized accurately on their platforms, in a recent announcement. The action has been taken in observance of FSSAI’s findings where food items licensed as ‘Proprietary Food’ were labeled as ‘Energy Drink’ or ‘Health Drink’ on various Food eCommerce platforms.

Furthermore, emphasis has been given to highlighting the importance of accurately classifying the food products when it comes to selling online by FSSAI. They've flagged a problem: some items labeled as 'Proprietary Food', which have specific ingredients but aren't tightly regulated, are being incorrectly placed in categories like 'Health Drink' or 'Energy Drink'.

FSSAI Finds It Improper Definition for Health Drink

According to the FSS Act 2006 and the rules and regulations associated with the same, there is no standardized definition for the Health Drink term, marked FSSAI. This is why it has been advised to all Food eCommerce FBOs to correct their mistake of incorrect labeling either by removing or delinking such food products from Health and Energy Drinks categories. They are advised to mark their products under the right category as specified by existing laws.

According to FSSAI, ‘Proprietary Foods’ differ from the standardized norms listed in the ‘Food Safety and Standards’ regulations. Although these products make use of standardized ingredients, they operate beyond the restrictions of specific regulatory frameworks.

Restrictions on Energy Drink Terms Highlighted

Furthermore, clarification regarding the usage of the term ‘ Energy Drinks’ has been highlighted by the FSSAI stating that it is only suitable for products falling within defined categories mentioned in the FCS (Food Category System) 14.1.4.1 and 14.1.4.2. These categories specifically include carbonated and non-carbonated water-based flavored beverages, according to FSSAI. This classification follows the standards sketched out in sub-regulation 2.10.6 (2) of the Food Product Standards and Food Additives Regulations 2011, mainly showing caffeinated beverages.

The recent action taken by FSSAI is proposed to encourage clarity and transparency when it comes to the attribution and functionalities of food products offered on food eCommerce platforms. With the proper categorization of products, the authority is looking forward to ensuring that customers can make better decisions without getting confused by misleading information.