The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has directed State food safety commissioners to scrutinise the labels of multi-source vegetable edible oil products sold on retail shelves to check for compliance with labelling regulations. It has also asked them to take immediate action against errant manufacturers that are not in compliance with regulations and submit a report by June 1.
As per FSSAI’s regulations, edible oil products containing an admixture of multiple vegetable edible oils cannot be sold under the “common or generic” name of a single oil used in the blend. It needs to be labelled as “multi-source edible vegetable oil” as per FSS (Prohibition and Restriction on Sales) Regulations 2011.
In addition, the labels need to display information regarding the name and nature of each edible vegetable oil used in the preparation of the product, as well as their percentage by weight. This declaration needs to be made on the front of the pack and immediately below the brand name or trade name of the multi-source edible vegetable oil products as per the FSS (Labelling and Display) Regulations 2020, it stated.
‘Deceptive labels’
In a letter sent to all State food safety commissioners, FSSAI has directed them to “check and verify all such oil products/ manufacturers” that come under their jurisdiction. It has directed that improvement notices must be sent to Food Business Operators who are found to be in violation of these labelling regulations. It also pointed out that notices should also be issued to manufacturers that have put “deceptive labels” on multi-source vegetable edible oil products, “creating erroneous impression regarding the nature of products.”
The action-taking report to be submitted by June 1 must outline various details such as the number of labels that have been examined and found in violation, besides the number of improvement notices issued.
As per FSSAI standards, multi-source vegetable edible oils is an admixture of any two edible vegetable oils where the proportion by weight of any vegetable edible oil used in the admixture is not less than 20 per cent.