{"id":656,"date":"2026-09-01T21:53:39","date_gmt":"2026-09-01T21:53:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/health.dzwonkinatelefon.net\/fssais-proposed-warning-labels-could-let-unhealthy-foods-escape-scrutiny-says-expert\/"},"modified":"2026-09-01T21:53:39","modified_gmt":"2026-09-01T21:53:39","slug":"fssais-proposed-warning-labels-could-let-unhealthy-foods-escape-scrutiny-says-expert","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/healthcare.hibisports.com\/?p=656","title":{"rendered":"FSSAI\u2019s proposed warning labels could let unhealthy foods escape scrutiny, says expert"},"content":{"rendered":"
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The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has proposed red hexagonal warning labels on packaged foods high in sugar, salt, and saturated fat, but critical gaps in the framework could leave several unhealthy products without a warning, nutrition advocate Arun Gupta said.<\/p>\n

While the proposal marks a step forward after sustained intervention by the Supreme Court, its \u201ctwo or more\u201d nutrients threshold is a major loophole, Dr. Gupta, convenor of Nutrition Advocacy in Public Interest (NAPI), told The Hindu<\/i>.<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tFSSAI proposes front-of-pack red pictorial warnings for foods high in fat, sugar, salt<\/div>\n
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The Supreme Court recently pushed the Centre and FSSAI to act swiftly on front-of-pack warning labels for unhealthy packaged foods. The FSSAI has now proposed red, hexagonal labels flagging products high in sugar, salt or fat to help consumers make informed choices.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, under the proposal, a warning would be triggered only when a product is high in two or more nutrients of concern \u2014 added saturated fat, added sugar, and added salt. \u201cA product could be high in sugar but carry no warning if it is low in fat and salt. That defeats the purpose of a warning label,\u201d Dr. Gupta said.<\/p>\n

The rule, he said, should be simple: \u201cHigh in sugar \u2014 warning; high in salt \u2014 warning; high in saturated fat \u2014 warning.\u201d He also called for time-bound implementation, and said the framework should be aligned with the Indian Council of Medical Research-National Institute of Nutrition (ICMR-NIN) Dietary Guidelines, 2024, which provide thresholds for total sugar and total fat per 100 gm.<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tFrom Bournvita to \u2018100% Pure\u2019: Why is FSSAI tightening the rules on food claims? | Explained<\/div>\n
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Dr. Gupta also questioned the proposed use of \u201cadded\u201d nutrients and called for following a clear, scientifically robust definition of high fat, sugar and salt (HFSS) foods. \u201cIndia already has an HFSS definition reflected in the 2022 draft notification and parliamentary discussions. We should not keep reinventing the definition in a way that weakens the regulation,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

He also criticised the proposed size of the warning, which would be one point larger than the back-of-pack nutrition information. \u201cIf the nutrition table is printed in tiny type, making the warning one point larger does not make it prominent,\u201d he said, calling for the size of the warning to be linked to the principal display area of the package.<\/p>\n

The warnings should also be available in Hindi and English, he said, arguing that language and visibility were essential if the labels were to reach consumers across the country.<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tIndia wanted red flags on chip packets and soda. Big Food fought back.<\/div>\n
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\u201cThe court should examine whether the proposed framework will actually deliver what a warning label is meant to do \u2014 give consumers a simple, visible, and scientifically sound indication of risk,\u201d Dr. Gupta said, listing the nutrient threshold, timeline of the second phase, definition of HFSS, the use of \u201cadded\u201d nutrients, the size of the warning label, and exemptions as areas requiring scrutiny.<\/p>\n

The issue has been under discussion for years. India has mandatory nutrition information on packaged foods but has never had a mandatory, interpretive front-of-pack warning specifically flagging products high in sugar, salt or saturated fat. FSSAI began examining front-of-pack labelling in 2018 and proposed HFSS and front-of-pack nutrition regulations in 2022, but the process has remained stalled. The Supreme Court\u2019s intervention in 2026 has now pushed the issue forward.<\/p>\n

Previously, the apex court directed the FSSAI to implement interpretive warning labels on packaged foods high in sugar, salt, and saturated fat. After subsequent hearings on the regulator\u2019s progress, the FSSAI submitted a compliance affidavit on August 28, 2026, proposing the red hexagonal warning label. The matter is scheduled to come up for hearing again\u00a0on September 10, 2026.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Under the proposal to have red hexagonal warning labels on packaged foods, areas requiring scrutiny include the nutrient threshold, the timeline of the second phase, the definition of HFSS (foods high in fat, sugar, salt), the use of \u2018added\u2019 nutrients, the size of the warning label, and exemptions<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2303,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-656","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/healthcare.hibisports.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/656","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/healthcare.hibisports.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/healthcare.hibisports.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/healthcare.hibisports.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/healthcare.hibisports.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=656"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/healthcare.hibisports.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/656\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/healthcare.hibisports.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/2303"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/healthcare.hibisports.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=656"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/healthcare.hibisports.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=656"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/healthcare.hibisports.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=656"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}