Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006

The Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 establishes a unified legal framework for regulating food safety in India. It consolidates food-related laws, establishes the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), and regulates the manufacture, storage, distribution, sale and import of food to ensure that it is safe and wholesome for human consumption.

Standards and regulatory scope

The Act moves food regulation towards science-based standards and regulation across the food chain, rather than inspection of finished products alone.

• FSSAI specifies standards for food products, additives, contaminants, pesticide residues and other safety parameters.
• The framework covers packaging and labelling, hygiene requirements, and restrictions on misleading food advertisements and claims.
• Imported food must comply with the Act and applicable rules and regulations.

Institutions and division of responsibilities

FSSAI, established under Section 4, is the central statutory authority under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. It sets standards through regulations and provides scientific advice and technical support on food safety.

• State Commissioners of Food Safety oversee implementation within their states.
• Designated Officers and Food Safety Officers perform district-level regulatory functions, including licensing administration, inspections, sampling and enforcement, according to their statutory powers.
• Recognised laboratories and Food Analysts support the testing of samples and determination of compliance.

Responsibilities of food businesses

The Act places the primary responsibility for compliance on the food business operator, covering the stages of business under that operator’s control.

• Section 31 generally requires food businesses to obtain a licence; specified petty manufacturers and small food businesses must register instead.
• Operators must ensure that food complies with applicable safety standards and must not manufacture or sell unsafe, substandard or misbranded food.
• Where an operator has reason to believe that food handled by it is non-compliant, the Act requires withdrawal procedures and notification to the competent authorities.

Enforcement and consumer protection

The Act combines preventive supervision with graded penalties and criminal punishment, depending on the nature and consequences of a contravention.

• Enforcement tools include inspection, sampling, seizure, improvement notices and suspension or cancellation of licences.
• Monetary penalties address specified contraventions, while unsafe food causing injury or death can attract imprisonment and fines.
• The framework provides for adjudication and appeals, and compensation where food causes injury or death.