Draft Food Safety and Standards (Import) Amendment Regulations, 2024

On October 3, 2024, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) announced a draft to amend the Food Safety and Standards (Import) Regulations, 2017. The proposed amendments, made under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, will be considered after a 60-day public consultation period, during which stakeholders can submit objections or suggestions. Key changes include the substitution of clause (b) in sub-regulation (4) of regulation 10, specifying that food analysis must follow the latest manuals adopted by the Authority. If no methods are available in these manuals, validated methods from recognized agencies like AOAC, ISO, and Codex Alimentarius can be used. Additionally, the draft specifies that laboratories must provide signed analysis reports within five days of sample receipt. The principal regulations were initially published in the Gazette of India on March 9, 2017, and have undergone several amendments since then. Feedback can be sent to the Chief Executive Officer of FSSAI at FDA Bhawan, New Delhi, or via email at [email protected].
FOOD SAFETY AND STANDARDS AUTHORITY OF INDIA
NOTIFICATION
New Delhi, the 3rd October, 2024
F. No. QA/11023/31/2022-QA-FSSAI(1).– The following draft of certain regulations further to amend the Food Safety and Standards (Import) Regulations, 2017, which the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India proposes to make with the previous approval of the Central Government, in exercise of the powers conferred by clause (e) of sub-section (2) of section 92 of the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 (34 of 2006) is hereby published as required by sub-section (1) of section 92 of the said Act for the information of all persons likely to be affected thereby and notice is hereby given that the said draft regulations shall be taken into consideration after the expiry of a period of sixty days from the date on which copies of the Official Gazette in which this notification is published are made available to the public.
Objections or suggestions, if any, may be addressed to the Chief Executive Officer, Food Safety and Standards Authority of India, FDA Bhawan, Kotla Road, New Delhi – 110002 or sent on email at [email protected].
Objections or suggestions, which may be received from any person with respect to the said draft regulations before the expiry of the period so specified, shall be considered by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India.
Draft Regulations
1. These regulations may be called the Food Safety and Standards (Import) Amendment Regulations, 2024.
2. In the Food Safety and Standards (Import) Regulations, 2017, –
(1) in regulation 10, in sub-regulation (4), for clause (b), the following shall be substituted, namely: –
“(b) The manuals of the method of analysis, as amended or adopted by the Authority from time to time, shall be used for analysing the samples of food articles. However, in case the method for analysing any parameter is not available in these manuals, the Food Laboratory may adopt a validated method of analysis prescribed by AOAC/ ISO / Pearson’s/ Jacob/ IUPAC/ Food Chemicals CODEX/ BIS/ Codex Alimentarius/ Woodmen/ Winton-Winton/ Joslyn or any other internationally recognized regulatory agencies.”;
(2) in regulation 10, for sub-regulation (5), the following shall be substituted, namely: –
“(5) The notified laboratory or referral laboratory shall provide the laboratory analysis report duly signed by its Food Analyst or Director, as the case may be, in FORM – 2 within five days from the date of receipt of the sample.”
G. KAMALA VARDHANA RAO, Chief Executive Officer
[ADVT.-III/4/Exty./543/2024-25]
Note: The principal regulations were published in the Gazette of India, Extraordinary Part III, Section 4, vide notification number F. No. 1/2008/Import safety/FSSAI, dated 9th March, 2017 and subsequently amended vide notification numbers:
1. F. No. REG/11/25/Import amendment/FSSAI-2017, dated 7th February, 2018;
2. F. No. 1-1275/FSSAI/Import/2015, dated the 20th October, 2020;
3. F. No. 4067/MOC-Trade/Reg-FSSAI/2017(Part-1), dated 3rd November, 2021; and
4. F. No. 1605/ FSSAI/Import/2016(pt-2), dated 14th February, 2022.