Food Regulator Nudges Quick And E-Commerce Companies To Comply With 45-Day Expiry Rules Amid Rising Complaints

During a meeting on Tuesday, which involved over 200 executives from companies including Zomato, Blinkit, Big Basket, Amazon, and several e-commerce sellers, the Chief Executive Officer of the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India, G Kamala Vardhana Rao, directed companies to follow the Food Safety and Standards Amendment Regulations of 2020 that mandates sellers and platforms to list food items only if they have a minimum of 30% of their shelf life or at least 45 days remaining at the time of delivery.

Taking action against the consumer complaints regarding false advertising of food and non-food products, the regulator nudged the sellers and companies to adhere to the existing labelling and packaging regulations. The regulator also clarified that the online platforms cannot simply bypass existing food safety norms to support their 10-minute delivery services.

FSSAI particularly highlighted Amazon's advertising of cooking oil from a well-known brand with claims of "healthier heart" benefits. It noted that such claims were misleading since the manufacturer does not endorse them.

Similarly, a few companies have products listed under 'the'superfood' category on their website. The FSSAI said that the current regulation does not recognise superfoods as a category, and hence they are non-compliant. Companies were warned to ensure accurate product information to prevent consumer deception, according to the attendees.

Addressing the risk of contamination, the FSSAI mandated that companies conduct medical check-ups for delivery personnel and stressed that all riders must possess a valid FOSTAC (Food Safety Training and Certification) certificate. It also stressed the importance of delivering food and non-food items separately to the consumers to avoid potential contamination. As the demand for rapid delivery continues to rise in the country, FSSAI CEO noted that a transparent, compliant, and accountable e-commerce sector is vital.

One e-commerce representative pointed out the difficulties of adhering to the existing expiry date rules for short-shelf-life products like milk. They urged the regulator to amend this rule to support their business models. In response, the regulator stated that if companies struggle to comply with the rules, they can "stay out of the business" or the specific category.

The food regulator received at least 10,000 complaints from across the country regarding online companies that fail to display "best before" dates.

Swiggy Instamart, Zomato’s Blinkit, and Zepto are among the companies that do not display best-before dates in their product images or descriptions. Flipkart Minutes, however, stands out as the only platform that provides transparency by showing the manufacturing and expiry dates of packaged goods sold on its site.