Food Safety and Standards (Labelling and Display) Regulations 2020

What’s in Today’s Article?

• Why in News?
• What is the FSSAI?
• What is the Food Safety and Standards (Labelling and Display) Regulations 2020?
• News Summary Regarding QR Code on Food Labels

Why in News?

• The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has recommended the inclusion of QR code on food products for accessibility by visually impaired individuals.
• The FSSAI under its Food Safety and Standards (Labelling and Display) Regulations 2020 has comprehensively outlined the information to be included on the labels of food products.

What is the FSSAI?

• FSSAI is a statutory body established under the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, Government of India.
• The FSSAI was established in 2008 under the Food Safety and Standards Act 2006, which is a consolidating statute related to food safety and regulation in India.
• FSSAI is responsible for protecting and promoting public health through the regulation and supervision of food safety 

What is the Food Safety and Standards (Labelling and Display) Regulations 2020?

• The FSSAI under these new Regulations has addressed many gaps in the erstwhile Food Safety and Standards (Packaging and Labelling) Regulations 2011.
• The new Regulations come with a host of new requirements -
  • Mandatory declaration of allergen information,
  • Per-serve contribution of nutrients to recommended dietary allowances (RDA),
  • Expiry date,
  • New logo and symbols for non-veg and food items not meant for human consumption, etc.
• Under the new Regulations, even e-commerce platforms are required to provide for mandatory labelling of food products offered for sale through their platform with certain exceptions.
• Further the new regime has also brought restaurant operators with a large chain of networks within its scope.

News Summary Regarding QR Code on Food Labels

• In its recent advisory, the FSSAI notes that ensuring inclusive access to information is a fundamental right of citizens.
  • This information is aimed at empowering consumers to make informed choices when selecting food products.
• It’s imperative that food products are labelled in a manner that ensures accessibility of safe food to all consumers, including those with visual impairments.
• The Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act 2016 recognises the rights and needs of individuals with disabilities, which emphasises accessibility and the promotion of health for persons with disabilities.
• One effective means to achieve this is by incorporating Quick Response [QR] codes on product labels.
• These QR codes should encompass comprehensive details about the product, including, but not limited to,
  • Ingredients,
  • Nutritional information,
  • Allergens,
  • Manufacturing date,
  • Best before/expiry/use by date,
  • Allergen warning, and
  • Contact information for customer inquiries.
• It is pertinent to note that the inclusion of a QR code for the accessibility of information does not replace or negate the requirement to provide mandatory information on the product label, as prescribed by relevant regulations.

Q1) What is a Quick Response (QR) code?

A QR code is a type of barcode that can be read easily by a digital device and which stores information as a series of pixels in a square-shaped grid.

 Q2) What are the Recommended Dietary Allowances (RDAs)?

RDAs are the levels of intake of essential nutrients that, on the basis of scientific knowledge, are judged by the Food and Nutrition Board to be adequate to meet the known nutrient needs of practically all healthy persons.

Source: Food labels to have QR code to help the visually disabled