FSSAI to Come up With New Regulations for Beer and Bread

The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) will introduce new standards for two major everyday products: bread and beer. The regulations will be released in the next two to three months, as previously reported.

According to FSSAI CEO Arun Singhal, beer brands would be compelled to disclose the calorie content per bottle, while bread manufacturers will be permitted to label products as 'multigrain,' 'whole wheat,' or 'brown' bread only if they contain a specified quantity of multigrain or whole wheat.

He also stated that "with calorie count disclosure on bottles, consumers may opt for lower-calorie beer" — currently, the alcoholic content of beer is shown on the container by weight.

Bread can be labeled whole wheat if it includes at least 75% whole wheat, brown bread if it contains 50% whole wheat, multigrain if it contains 20% multigrain and garlic bread if it contains at least 2% garlic.

In 2021, the regulator issued a rule mandating all liquor bottles to bear warnings similar to those seen on tobacco or cigarette packs, such as "Drinking is harmful to health" and "Don't drink and drive."

In 2018, the Food Safety and Standards (Alcoholic Beverages Standards) Regulation, 2018 was notified by the food authority regarding a separate regulation that applies to alcoholic beverages such as brandy, country liquor, gin, rum, vodka, and whisky, liqueur or alcoholic cordial as well as wines and beer.

The FSSAI has signed Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) with a number of states in order to help them improve their food safety and security systems.

Other Initiatives

Separately, the FSSAI has issued a directive governing the disclosure of percentage contribution to the Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA) on product labels for different age groups. It has been stated that when labeling food for a certain age group or physiological condition, the RDAs for that age group or condition may be considered.

Meanwhile, according to separate reports, the FSSAI has designated four police stations in the New Delhi region as "Eat Right Campus" — as part of the regulator's "Eat Right India" mission, which aims to ensure that citizens of the nation get safe and nutritious food.

This program included a preliminary assessment of the campus, finding deficiencies and filling them through capacity building, training and sensitization, the development of standard operating procedures, and a final audit by third-party organizations.  Following the completion of these activities, the FSSAI designated the campus as an Eat Right Campus and issued a certificate to that effect.