The country’s apex food regulator, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), has sent notices to several restaurants for not mentioning the calorie count against food items on the menu according to requirements of its latest labelling regulations, people familiar with the matter said.
The last date for complying with the norms was January 1, 2022, was later extended to July 1, 2022.
“It is a compliance issue; several of them are yet to make the required changes,” said a senior government official aware of the matter, on condition of anonymity, refusing to divulge more details on the nature of notice.
According to rules, the food regulator even has the power to cancel the license of an eatery for non-compliance.
In November 2020, the food regulator notified new food packaging and labelling regulations, according to which all restaurants that have been issued central licenses or those that have a chain with 10 or more eateries would need to mention the calorie count per serving size of the food item on the menu card, boards and booklets for customers to clearly see.
The restaurants would also require to provide allergen information individually regarding the ingredients used in the items, nutritional information, and veg/non-veg logo.
The business operators on the e-commerce platforms also need to acquire this information from their partner restaurants to mention on their portal.
“The changes have been made for customers to be able to make an informed choice,” added the official cited above.
FSSAI is an autonomous body under the union ministry of health and family welfare that is mandated to set standards related to food safety in the country.
The regulator has regularly been updating regulations, and the packaging and labelling regulations are the latest norms in the list that have been modified to meet the current demands of the sector.
Also Read : FSSAI makes Nutrition info on menu Mandatory: Food businesses have time till June 30
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