The healthcare sector is witnessing an inclination in the demand for vegan food products. Veganism is becoming a prevalent lifestyle and dietary choice for the current generation. Veganism abstains from consumption or usage of animal-derived products or by-products in one’s daily lifestyle.
The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (“FSSAI”) under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, introduced the Food Safety and Standards (Vegan Foods) Regulations, 2022 (“Vegan Food Regulations”) on 10 June 2022 to regulate the production and circulation of vegan food products among the consumers in India1. The Vegan Food Regulations define the term “vegan food” as “the food or food ingredient, including additives, flavourings, enzymes and carriers, or processing aids that are not products of animal origin and in which, at no stage of production and processing, ingredients, including additives, flavourings, enzymes and carriers, or processing aids that are of animal origin has been used.2”
The FSSAI monitors and enforces food quality and hygiene in India. It has introduced a long list of healthcare regulations and compliances over the years to ensure food safety in India. It is important for food business entities to consult with healthcare lawyers to ensure compliance with regulatory practices.
The Vegan Food Regulations place significant responsibility on the food business entities for assuring compliance with the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 and its associated healthcare laws. Vegan food products should not engage in animal testing practices for any purpose, including safety trials. The food business entities engaged in the processing, manufacturing, packaging, marketing and sale of vegan food have to mandatorily adhere to the regulatory requirements in line with good manufacturing practices, such as adopting a standard cleaning method for the production line if both, vegan and non-vegan products are manufactured using the same equipment, to avoid making any misleading claims about any non-vegan ingredients in such products. The traceability of the ingredients shall be set up “up to the level of the manufacturer” in the production of vegan food products. Similar attention and precautions must be taken during the preparation and packaging of vegan foods. The FSSAI has also laid down the regulatory procedure for the import of vegan food products in India. The top healthcare law firms in India can be engaged to ensure compliance with regulatory practices to be undertaken by the food business entities.
The compliance obligations of such food business entities also extend to labelling, packaging and sale of vegan food products. The entities shall be responsible for ensuring compliance with the Food Safety and Standards (Labelling and Display) Regulations3 and must mark clear distinctions between vegan and non-vegan food products. After receiving approval from the FSSAI, the manufacturers should display the following logo on their vegan food products:
Currently, the major jurisdictions around the globe, namely, the European Union, United Kingdom and the United States of America do not have stringent healthcare laws in place to regulate the production and consumption of vegan food products in their consumer market. The regulatory food authorities have only prescribed regulation to control any misbranding or misleading labelling of products and to provide accurate information to consumers specifying the suitability of vegan food products.
The Indian food authority, FSSAI is a regulatory watchdog for the food business entities and has been proactively working towards ensuring the quality and safety of food products consumed by the citizens of India. Its efforts in understanding the needs of the current generation and introducing the Vegan Food Regulations have been hailed as a landmark step at international platforms. Acknowledging the series of compliances that the food business entities shall have to undertake, it is strongly recommended that such food business entities seek guidance from experienced healthcare lawyers to ensure compliance with relevant healthcare laws and regulations.
[1] Notification F. No. Std/TF-Vegan Foods/Notif/FSSAI, ‘the Food Safety and Standards (Vegan Foods) Regulations, 2022’, accessed at: https://fssai.gov.in/upload/notifications/2022/06/62ac3f9dba33cGazette_Notification_Vegan_Food_17_06_2022.pdf [2] Regulation 2(a) of The Food Safety and Standards (Vegan Foods) Regulations, 2022. [3] ‘Food Safety and Standards (Labelling and Display) Regulations, 2020], accessed at https://www.fssai.gov.in/upload/uploadfiles/files/Compendium_Labelling_Display_23_09_2021.pdf [4] European Commission: Art. 36(3)(b), Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 October 2011 on the provision of food information to consumers, accessed at https://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:L:2011:304:0018:0063:en:PDF United Kingdom: Food Labelling and Packaging, UK.Gov, accessed at https://www.gov.uk/food-labelling-and-packaging United States of America: The Federal Food, Drugs and Cosmetics Act, enacted 15 March 2022, accessed at https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/COMPS-973/pdf/COMPS-973.pdf
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