Home > An Overview of India’s Food Industry

India is the second most populous country in the world and one of the world’s biggest and fastest growing economies.  A United Nations Report estimates that India’s Population will overtake China’s by 2022. Notwithstanding the serious hunger situation that still afflicts some areas of the country, Indian middle class has doubled in size to 600 million people, almost half of its population. Urban population is also expanding steadily, now reaching 30% of the total presenting opportunities for foreign food products.

Also, as a result of FDI policy towards food processing and trading, the imported food segment is growing at around 30% per year. Consumer awareness of packaged foods is increasing and imported and premium foods are becoming common in the urban dwellers pantry, less traditional in their alimentary choices. Valued at US$15 million, wines are one of the fastest growing import categories in India, with France, Italy and Australia accounting for 60% of the total figures for this product. Dairy is also growing considerably, while other imported food categories (like meat) are not yet as common in retail but well established in HORECA channels.

All this, along with the interesting growth rates of e-commerce and digital economy, constitute excellent opportunities for the food industry, making India a very attractive destination for foreign investors across many sectors.

In spite of this, we remind food operators that in India certain products are either banned or not very common because of cultural, religious or legal reasons. For instance, it is illegal to import Beef and its products into the Country and alcohol is banned in some of the 29 Indian States. India is also the country with most vegetarians and vegans in the World.

Despite recent regulatory simplifications, exporting food products to India requires some efforts to comply with regulations, and this article’s purpose is to shed some light on this.

Food Management Authorities of India:

Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI)

Established in 2006 by the Food Safety and Standards Act, Food Safety and Standards Authority of India is an autonomous body under the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare of Indian Government. Headquartered in Delhi, FSSAI’s main objective is to lay science-based standards for food articles and “regulate their manufacture, storage, distribution, sale and import to ensure availability of safe and wholesome food for human consumption”.

Its main functions are:

• Framing of regulations to lay down food safety standards;
• Laying down guidelines for accreditation of laboratories for food testing;
• Providing scientific advice and technical support to the Central Government;
• Contributing to the development of international technical standards in food;
• Collecting and collating data regarding food consumption, contamination, emerging risks etc;
• Disseminating information and promoting awareness about food safety and nutrition in India

Main Food Regulations of India:

Food Safety and Standards Act

The 2006 Food Safety and Standards Act is the overarching regulation on Food Safety in India. Its promulgation marked a shift from decentralized administration involving multiple authorities towards more centralized power establishing FSSAI as the primary authority for all matters relating to food safety. It regulates many matters like food imports, functions of food authorities, penalties and surveillance etc.

Food Safety and Standard Rules and Regulations

Rules are made by the Central Government and cover many different issues, like annual report, the appointment of officials, etc. Regulations are made by FSSAI and cover limits of additives, contaminants, additives and pesticides, food labelling, food recalls, etc. Food Standards fall under this category.

Food Standards

Food Standards can be categorized in horizontal Standards and vertical Standards. Horizontal standards cover broad non-specific categories like Contaminants, Toxins and Packaging and Labeling, while vertical Standards cover food-product specific subjects like Food Product Standards and Food Additives and Health Supplements.

Among the most important standards, we can cite: 

• Food Safety and Standards (Import) Regulation;
• Food Safety and Standards (Food Product Standards and Food Additives) Regulation;
• Food Safety and Standards (Food or Health Supplements, Nutraceuticals, Foods for Special Dietary Uses, Foods for Special Medical Purpose, Functional Foods and Novel Food) Regulations;
• Food Safety and Standards (Packaging) Regulation;
• Food Safety and Standards (Labelling & Display) Regulation;
• Food Safety and Standards (Contaminants, Toxins and Residues) Regulation.

Exporting Food to India: An Overview of Requirements

Besides following relevant FSSAI food standards, all food imported to India should also comply with 2017 Food Safety and Standard (Import) Regulations, which sets requirements for Food Import for Commercial and other Purposes. These are the steps to follow if importing food for commercial purposes.

FSSAI Registration:

FSSAI Registration is the first step of the import procedures and it results in obtaining a FSSAI License and a FSSL number. Please note that there are three types of FSSAI license: Basic, State and Central and that food exporters will need the Central License. You can find the list of documents required prior the application here. This is a simplified chart of the procedure.

FSSAI License procedure will take approximately 32 to 52 working days to be completed.

Custom Clearance Procedure:

FSSAI regulates food imports to India through safety and quality checks at the ports of entry.

FSSAI also established its own food online import clearance system (FICS), integrated with the customs ICEGATE, a data interchange gateway. Custom Clearance also requires the timely preparation of a number of different documents. Future importers can undergo a Pre-Arrival Document Scrutiny (PADS) before any shipment is made.

Some major importers can choose “green channel” clearance facilities at the filing of Bill of Entry. The biggest difference with the ordinary procedure is that physical examination of the goods won’t be required.

FSSAI divides food items into two categories: high risk and low risk, and the difference lays in the way sampling is done. Here is a list of High-Risk Food categories:

• Meat and meat products
• Fish and fish products
• Egg and egg products
• Dairy products and analogues
• Foodstuffs intended for particular nutritional uses
• Prepared Foods
• Indian Sweets
• Nutrients and their preparations (Fortified Rice Kernels only)

Food Surveillance in India:

FSSAI established a General Surveillance Plan collecting data regarding contaminants in foods. Surveillance can be active and passive. Active Surveillance employs permanent staff members in contact with laboratories to regularly get information about food quality, food ingredient usage, etc., while passive Surveillance receives reports submitted by food operators or any other source.

Food Labeling Requirements:

All prepackaged food shall carry a label containing product information either in English or in Hindi (Devanagari script). General Requirements of food labeling are as follows:

The following information shall appear on food label:

• Name of the food
• List of Ingredients
• Nutritional Information
• Declaration regarding Vegetarian and Non-Vegetarian
• Declaration regarding Food Additives
• Name and Complete address of Manufacturer along with FSSAI License No. and FSSAI Logo
• Net Quantity
• Lot/Batch Identification
• Date of Manufacturing or packing
• Best before or use by date
• Country of Origin (For Imported Food)
• Instruction for use
• Storage Condition

To look at the detailed food labeling requirements of India, check Food Safety and Standards (Labelling & Display) Regulations.

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