New food regulations for categories such as pulses, organic food and honey among others have come into force from January 1, with the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) working to accelerate the process of setting new standards.

In a statement, FSSAI said that all provisions of organic food regulations will come into force from Tuesday. The new regulations will for the first time introduce standards for certification and labelling in the organic food space. At the same time, it aims to address issues concerning quality, purity and curb rampant adulteration in honey, with the the new standards that also become effective from Tuesday.

Food regulations for all pulses, pearl millet grains, de-germed maize flour, sago besides microbiological standards for fruits and vegetables have also come in force with the beginning of the new year. “During the year, FSSAI has accelerated the process of standards setting. As many as 27 new regulations for food standards were notified in 2018,” the official statement added.

The new regulations have been notified for various categories such as alcoholic beverages, food fortification besides new regulations for advertising and claims among others. “Food businesses are usually provided a period of at least 6-months as transition period before new standards come into force and date of effect of standards is either January 1 or July1 ,” it added.

While standards for alcoholic beverages will come into force from April 1, food fortification regulations will be effective July 1. “The regulations on Advertising and Claims, packaging and Labelling requirements of Blended Edible Vegetable Oils will come into force on July 1, 2019,” the statement added.

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