India’s food regulator to review entry points for food imports as it tightens the screws on shipments

New Delhi: India’s top food regulator – the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) – has cracked down on food imports, saying it has authorized officials at only 155 points to clear consignments “until further notice”.

“To put in place a robust regulatory framework for food at the points of entry to ensure the mandate of safe food imports into India, FSSAI has decided to review the points of entry notified for food imports keeping in mind the trend/volume of food imports, testing facilities and logistics infrastructure etc,” said G. Kamala Vardhana Rao, CEO, FSSAI, in a May 3 communication seen by Mint.

“It has been decided to inform appropriate officials at only 155 specified points of entry for clearance of food imports until further notice,” Rao added.

Queries to the FSSAI spokesperson were not immediately answered.

“When food products are referred to FSSAI for approval at entry points, they are subjected to scrutiny of documents, visual inspection, sampling and testing to determine whether they are compliant or not,” said a second official.

“Over the years, the number of entry points has increased to ensure effective regulatory control of imported food products,” the official added.

In December 2022, a parliamentary committee recommended that the FSSAI directly regulate all food imports by deploying more officials at all entry points and providing quality training to staff.

FSSAI’s Baby Feeding Tube

Meanwhile, the FSSAI has extended its investigation into Nestle to all baby food brands and has started collecting samples of baby food brands to test for added sugars.

The research follows a study by Public Eye, a Swiss research organization, and the International Baby Food Action Network (IBFAN), which found that all Cerelac baby cereal products sold by Nestle in India contained added sugars – an average of almost 3 grams per serving.

“While the findings are global, we need to see if they conflict with our local rules,” an official said Mint earlier.

India’s food regulator allows the use of lactose and glucose polymers as “preferred carbohydrates” for infant foods.

“Sucrose and/or fructose should not be added unless necessary as a carbohydrate source, and provided that the sum of these does not exceed 20% of the total carbohydrates,” says the Food Safety and Standards (Foods for Infant Nutrition) Regulations , 2020.

Nestlé has maintained that its products made in India “fully and strictly comply” with global food standards and local specifications regarding the requirements of all nutrients, including added sugars.

“Compliance is an essential feature of Nestlé India and we will never compromise on it. We also ensure that our products manufactured in India fully and strictly comply with CODEX standards (a committee established by WHO and FAO) and local specifications (as required) regarding the requirements of all nutrients, including added sugars a company spokesperson said.