Food regulator FSSAI will soon notify a new standard for food supplements as part of its efforts to ensure safe and nutritious food to the people.

Last year, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) had come out with draft quality and safety norms to regulate food or health supplements, nutraceuticals, functional and dietary foods.

“The new standards of food supplements are in the final stage of notification and will be shortly notified post government approval,” FSSAI CEO Pawan Kumar Agarwal said at a conference of the Indian Direct Selling Association (IDSA).

Stating that about 60 per cent of the direct selling industry players deal in food products, he asked the members to create awareness about the food safety.

“It is FSSAI’s responsibility to ensure that safe and nutritious food is supplied to 130 crore people of the country and we do require support and cooperation of each member of this Industry,” Agarwal said.

“We have been having discussions with IDSA to effectively use the reach of 40 lakh distributors of IDSA member companies towards spreading food awareness, which is an elementary requirement,” he added.

IDSA Chairman Jitendra Jagota said: “The Direct Selling Industry has huge potential to reach Rs 15,000 crore by 2019—20. We are aiming at providing business opportunities to about 90 lakh people by 2019—20. While women remain the stronghold of the industry, our focus would also be to provide business opportunities to more men in the country.”

Published on October 25, 2016