India Food Stats

Mandates from the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) for e-commerce food business operators (FBOs) : Food items delivered online must have a minimum shelf life of 30% or 45 days before expiry at the time of delivery. For example, if a packet of butter has a 10-day shelf life, it must have at least 3 days of shelf life left when delivered. For food items with longer shelf lives (e.g., 3 or 6 months), a minimum of 45 days of shelf life should remain at the time of delivery. No FBO can operate on any e-commerce platform without a valid FSSAI license or registration. Product claims made on e-commerce platforms must align with the information on product labels and adhere to FSSAI's Labelling and Display Regulations. Food items and non-food items should be delivered separately to consumers to avoid potential contamination.

The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) is responsible for ensuring public health by promoting food safety. The FSSAI and State Food Safety Authorities share this responsibility as outlined by the Food Safety and Standards Act 2006. The FSSAI provides policy intervention, direction, and coordination at the national level, while States/UTs conduct food safety enforcement at the field level. To incentivize States and UTs to enhance food safety within their regions, the FSSAI announces the State Food Safety Index (SFSI) annually. This index is based on performance in five significant parameters: Human Resources and Institutional Data, Compliance, Food Testing-Infrastructure and Surveillance, Training & Capacity Building, and Consumer Empowerment. The chart below represents the State Food Safety Index (SFSI) scores PDF for different states and Union Territories in India.  The marking for the Index is based on data from various FSSAI online portals such as FoSCoS,...

World Food Safety Day, observed on June 7th, is dedicated to raising awareness and prompting actions that help prevent, detect, and manage foodborne risks. This contributes to food security, human health, economic prosperity, agriculture, market access, tourism, and sustainable development. Food safety saves lives. It is not only a crucial component to food security, but it also plays a vital role in reducing foodborne disease. Every year, 600 million people fall sick as a result of around 200 different types of foodborne illness. The burden of such illness falls most heavily on the poor and on the young. In addition, foodborne illness is responsible for 420,000 preventable deaths every year. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations has created a collection of leaflets that detail the measures individuals can take in various environments to guarantee the safe production, storage, serving, and consumption of food, as well as highlighting the significance and advantag...

FSSAI has published a book titled Common Tests for Detecting Adulterants with Rapid Testing (DART)  that can be read online or downloaded as PDF (42 pages). This book provides tests to detect common adulterants, including artificial and toxic colors, as well as extraneous substances intentionally or unintentionally added to various common household food types, such as: Milk and Milk Products  Oils and Fats Sugars and Confectionery Food Grains and its Products Salt Spices and Condiments Fruits and Vegetables Beverages

Some takeaways from The Pink Book: Your Guide for Safe and Nutritious Food at Home  published by Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI).  All oils are 100% fat, and therefore, should be consumed in recommended quantities only. No plant-based oil contains cholesterol. Some oils are more easily absorbed than others but 1 gm of any oil will give the same amount of energy, i.e., 9 kcal. Every kind of oil has some percentage of saturated fats, even though some oils contain more saturated fats than others. Often low fat foods have extra sugar, refined flour or starch thickeners to make them taste better. These ingredients add calories from carbohydrates, which may lead to weight gain. Brown bread need not mean whole wheat bread. Brown bread is often coloured with caramel colour and may have only a small percentage of wheat flour. To be genuinely labelled 'whole wheat bread', it must be at least 50% whole wheat.  Even a small amount of spoiled food can cause health...

A Food Business Operator (FBO) operating in more than two States has to get Central License for its registered Office/ Head Office and separate license/ Registration for each unit depending upon the capacity/ turnover from the concerned State/ Central Licensing Authority. Food Safety Compliance System (FoSCoS) is an enhanced version of Food Licensing and Registration System (FLRS) which was launched in 2012 for issuance of pan-India FSSAI Licenses and Registration.  To verify details of the manufacturer, use the Search feature via the 'FBO Search' tab on the FoSCoS website  - Individual or state-wide licenses can be retrieved. Inactive licenses are also listed in the results. FSSAI license number details that are shown include: FBO/company name. Premises address. License number. License type (State License or Central License). Validity (whether active or inactive). List of products of the FBO To safeguard the interests of the consumer and the society at large, Food Safety and ...