Notices issued to food businesses; action warned for violations
SRINAGAR, SEPTEMBER 10: The Food & Drugs Administration (FDA), Jammu & Kashmir, has found 35 food samples non-compliant with prescribed labelling requirements during a special enforcement drive conducted across all districts of the Union Territory.
The FDA scrutinised 455 food samples during the drive and issued notices to the concerned Food Business Operators (FBOs), directing them to rectify the deficiencies within the stipulated period. Further action will be taken in accordance with law in cases of non-compliance.
The scrutiny was carried out under the Food Safety and Standards (Labelling and Display) Regulations, 2020, and covered packaged food products including spices, edible oils, dairy products, bakery and confectionery items, honey, rice, beverages, coffee, dry fruits and other food articles.
The labels were examined for compliance with mandatory declarations, including the name and nature of food, ingredients, nutritional information, batch or lot number, date of manufacture or packing, Best Before or Expiry Date, MRP, manufacturer or packer details, FSSAI licence or registration number, vegetarian/non-vegetarian logo and other prescribed declarations.
The FDA also scrutinised health, nutritional and other claims appearing on food labels under the Food Safety and Standards (Advertising and Claims) Regulations, 2018.
Food Business Operators were directed to remove or rectify claims found to be misleading or not in conformity with applicable regulatory requirements.
Where violations are established, penal action will be taken under the relevant provisions of the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006.
Under Section 52 of the Act, misbranded food can attract a penalty of up to ₹3 lakh, while Section 53 provides for a penalty of up to ₹10 lakh for misleading advertisements. Section 61, relating to furnishing false information, provides for a penalty of up to ₹10 lakh.
The concerned Designated Officers and Food Safety Officers have been directed to ensure compliance by the FBOs and initiate further proceedings, including adjudication or prosecution, wherever warranted under the Act.
