With reference to pre-packaged items in India, it is mandatory to the manufacturer to put which of the following information on the main label, as per the Food Safety and Standards (Packaging and Labelling) Regulations, 2011?
- 1.List of ingredients including additives
- 2.Nutrition information
- 3.Recommendations, if any, made by the medical profession about the possibility of any allergic reactions
- 4.Vegetarian/non-vegetarian
Select the correct answer using the code given below.
Answer & explanation
Answer: (c) 1, 2 and 4
Regulation 2.2.2 of the 2011 FSSAI rules listed what every pre-packaged food label must carry: the name of the food, a list of ingredients (with additives), nutritional information, the veg/non-veg symbol, food-additive declarations, the maker's name and address, net quantity, batch number, dates and so on. A general statement of medical advice on possible allergic reactions was not among these mandatory items.
- ✓ 1. Except for single-ingredient foods, ingredients had to be listed on the label under a heading such as 'Ingredients', in descending order of weight or volume, with additives declared.
- ✓ 2. Nutritional information per 100 g, 100 ml or per serving (energy in kcal, protein, carbohydrate with sugar, fat) was required, with exemptions for items such as raw agricultural commodities.
- ✗ 3. The 2011 regulations had no general requirement to print medical recommendations about allergic reactions; allergy-related wording appeared only in special cases such as hypoallergenic infant formula.
- ✓ 4. Every package had to carry the green (vegetarian) or brown (non-vegetarian) symbol in the prescribed square-and-circle form.
- • Since then The 2011 rules have since been replaced by the Food Safety and Standards (Labelling and Display) Regulations, 2020, which now require a separate 'Contains...' declaration of common food allergens (FSSAI compendium).
Remember · FSSAI labelling (2011): name, ingredients with additives, nutrition facts, veg/non-veg symbol, maker, net quantity, batch, dates. Mandatory allergen declaration arrived only with the 2020 Labelling and Display Regulations.
Sources
- Food Safety and Standards (Packaging and Labelling) Regulations, 2011, reg. 2.2.2 (FSSAI PDF, archived copy) ↗ “List of Ingredients: Except for single ingredient foods, a list of ingredients shall be declared on the label in the following manner … Nutritional Information or nutritional facts per 100 gm or 100ml or per serving of the product shall be given on the label … Every package of “Non Vegetarian” food shall bear a declaration to this effect made by a symbol and colour code as stipulated below”
- FSSAI: Compendium, Food Safety and Standards (Labelling and Display) Regulations, 2020 ↗ “Declaration regarding Food allergen: The following foods and ingredients which are known to cause allergy shall be declared separately as Contains”
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