Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has come up with a novel Front-of-Pack Nutrition Labelling (FoPL) scheme, under which food items packaged and bearing a high content of nutrients like sugar, salt, and fats would have a red warning on their packages. This initiative has been taken to make consumers aware of the nutritional value of foods easily when buying packaged food products.
As per the new labelling scheme, the warning in the form of a red-colored hexagon would be printed on a white colored square background at the front of the package. Depending on the level of nutrition in the food item, there would be a declaration of terms such as “HIGH SUGAR”, “HIGH SALT” or “HIGH FAT”. In case of more than one nutrient exceeding the prescribed threshold limit, such declarations would be included in the hexagon.
FSSAI has made a suggestion for a single-phase implementation of the new labelling scheme. Nutrient thresholds have been proposed by FSSAI as per recommendations of ICMR-NIN and Dietary Guidelines for Indians.
In addition, the regulator has recommended a 365-day transition period for food businesses. As per the proposal, any amendments regarding labelling requirements would be made applicable from July 1, with a minimum of a 365-day transition period from the date of notification. This is done keeping in mind that the period may enable the companies to make changes to their packaging and utilise their existing stocks of printed packaging material.
This comes in response to the directions issued by the Supreme Court, which was looking for a clear-cut timeframe from FSSAI for the implementation of the front-of-pack warning labels. The court has also considered other factors such as the design, size, and efficiency of the label being proposed.
As far as consumers are concerned, these proposed labels can give a visible sign about their nutrition-related concerns when they purchase the product. But this is only a proposal and will be decided depending on the notification and implementation of the amendments.
