Have you ever wondered about opening up a restaurant or a food outlet? If you are planning to do so, then you are strongly advised to go through the FSSAI<\/a><\/strong> provisions. Today you see many food industries growing in business, and you may also think of setting up a food outlet, but this may be a complex task as you require adhering to every provision of the food regulations. After all, it’s about the safety and well being of the consumers. Since the safety of consumers is paramount; therefore, every food industry must strictly follow the guidelines, and non-compliance with FSSAI Act may invoke penal provisions under it. This article identifies the offences and the penal provisions under the FSSAI Act, but before that, we need to understand the meaning and the object of the FSSAI.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Food Safety and Standards Authority\nof India (FSSAI) is a self-governing body that regulates and monitors the food\nbusiness in India.<\/strong> It is established under the Ministry of Health and Welfare,\nGovernment of India. FSSAI is responsible for raising the standards of food safety\nin India. It makes sure that the food product undergoes quality checks before\nbeing consumed by the general public. It helps in the prevention of food\nadulteration or the sale of sub-standard food products. FSSAI is responsible\nfor licensing and registering food business operators in India. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The main objective of FSSAI is to:<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Apart from these, the FSSAI shall obligate the food\nbusiness operators to follow its compliances to ensure safe and wholesome food\nfor the consumption of people. Any non-compliance with FSSAI shall be\npunishable. It is also the only source of providing guidance and issuing\nadvisories for matters related to food safety. \n<\/p>\n\n\n\n Just\nlike any other industry is required to comply with concerned authorities, food\nindustries also need to be compliant with the laws and the guidelines of the\nFSSAI. In case the provisions are not complied with, then strict penalties\nwould be imposed on the violators as the matter is concerned with the health\nand safety of people. The provisions of penalties are specified under sections\n49 to 67 of the Food Safety and Standards Act.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Act identifies offences under\nsection 48 as adding, using, subtracting, or subjecting any article, substance\nto the food that may cause injury to health as non-compliance with FSSAI<\/strong>. Section 49 states that\nbefore an arbitrator decide on the quantum of penalty, he or she must consider\na few points:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Also, Read:<\/b> Food Safety and Standards Rules in India<\/a><\/mark>.<\/p><\/div>\n\n\n\n Let’s study the offences and penalties in detail under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 (hereinafter mentioned “FSSA 2006”).<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n It\nmust be noted that the adjudicating officer, in the event of a person held guilty\nof an offence leading to death or grievous injury, may cause the name and the\nplace of residence of the person and the offence and penalty of the accused to\nbe published in newspapers or in such other manner at the offender’s expense.\nThe court or the adjudicating officer may also order for cancellation of the\nlicence or forfeiture of establishment or property<\/a> in case of a consumer’s\ndeath or grievous injury.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If permitted by the competent authority under the Foreign\nTrade or any other Act, any such food article shall be destroyed or returned to\nthe importer. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Nestle India Limited vs. Food Safety\nand Standards Authority of India<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n This case is one of the notable cases that came to the fore from a district in the state of Uttar Pradesh, where samples of Maggi noodles were found with excessive lead and MSG. It was found that the presence of lead in the noodles was beyond the permissible limit. The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India took cognizance of the matter as it found it in non-compliance with FSSAI and directed Nestle India Ltd. to withdraw and recall nine variants of Maggi noodles<\/strong>[1]<\/strong><\/a><\/sup> since it contained unsafe and hazardous content for human consumption. The authority further took some stringent measures and ordered to stop the production, processing, import, and sale from immediate effect.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The\ngovernment banned the sale of Maggi noodles from May 2015 across the country.\nIt further slapped a suit on Nestle India, seeking a compensation of 640 crore\nRupees for non-compliance with FSSAI. \nHowever, Nestle India rejected the accusation that the noodles were\nunsafe. Much to the relief of Nestle India, a government authorized laboratory\ndeclared the noodles in compliance with the National food safety standards, and\nlater, Bombay High Court also permitted to export Maggi noodles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \n\nNon-compliance with FSSAI is a serious offence,\nand it is crucial for someone looking to start a food business to go through\nthe standard of food and safety that must be kept. They must check the FSSAI compliance\napplicable and any other regulatory requirement. Every food business operator\nis required to adhere to the guidelines of FSSAI in order to avoid paying hefty\npenalties applicable to non-compliance with FSSAI.\n\n\n\n<\/p>\n\n\n\nWhat is FSSAI?
<\/h2>\n\n\n\nObjective of FSSAI<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Offences and Penalties for non-compliance with FSSAI<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Landmark Case related to Non-compliance with FSSAI<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Conclusion<\/h3>\n\n\n\n