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 According to a report in PTI as carried by the Indian Express, FSSAI CEO, Pawan Agarwal told PTI, “The Food Safety Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has finalised a list of food additives and standards with respect to alcoholic beverages. With this, FSSAI has crossed a major landmark in setting of standards for almost all food categories available in the country.”
He added that these standards are in alignment with International Organisation of Vine and Wine (OIV) standards. The file is now with the Union Health Ministry, and the standards will be soon notified and will become operational. Earlier this month, the regulator had operationalised the list of 11,000 food additives provisions that can be used by food businesses in various categories, according to the report.
FSSAI was established under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006. The Act consolidated various earlier Acts and orders that were related to the food issues under various ministries and departments and was a welcome policy. But the arbitrary interpretations and lack of respect for businesses, resulted in a loss of crores of Rupees to the businesses, especially Maggi. Earlier Lindt chocolate called it a day after losing lakhs worth of chocolates.
The regulator was in the spotlight, albeit in a bad way, after it banned Maggi noodles a year ago. The ban was lifted by the Bombay High Court later and the business went as usual, except the company lost a few thousand crores of sales and its market share trickled from an earlier 70% to less than 20%. The multi-national company has been selling Maggi noodles in India and abroad for decades. Incidentally, the tests conducted by foreign agencies found them acceptable.
Similarly, Pernod Ricard suffered heavy losses when several containers were rejected solely on the basis of the additive tartaric acid which is a part of those additives allowed even in the US specifications and those provided as guidelines by OIV. FSSAI also lost its case in the Bombay High Court and the wine was allowed; it’s a moot point how much of it was spoilt or how much of it deteriorated being in the docks for 6 months. But the high-handedness of the government appointed Body was highlighted in that case as well.
India is a member of the OIV for about 4 years. Indian Wine Academy had strongly recommended India joining the organisation and in fact was a catalyst to making it happen despite the bureaucracy-led Ministry of Food Processing Industry. OIV even awarded a Medal of Merit to Subhash Arora for the exemplary honourary service to the wine industry globally. Till date, he is the only Indian recognised as such.
OIV had indicated before and during the processing of the application and while the Government was mulling over joining this ‘United Nations of Wine” to Subhash Arora and indeed the Ministry of Food Processing Industry, that OIV had established guidelines for wine safety and India would be welcome to use the standards for framing their policy. Unfortunately, the task of defining the additives and labelling etc was handed to the FSSAI who refused to acknowledge those guidelines, when presented by the now-defunct IGPB.
Food safety authority has reportedly approved standards for alcoholic drinks like whiskey and beer and finalised a list of additives to be used for making these products, according to a top official, says the report. This is the first time that standards and the additives list have been finalised for major alcoholic drinks.
This assumes importance because food products which have been manufactured by using these approved additives may not require product approval.
A public notice from the FSSAI on the proposed standards specifies the amount of alcohol in each category of alcoholic beverages, production methods and a list of compounds banned as additives in alcoholic drinks. It may also require producers to print a statement of the number of standard drinks on the label of each bottle; a standard drink defined as 10gm or 12.7ml of alcohol.
delWine totally supports this concept even if some producers might oppose this requirement, already existing in countries like Australia and UK. Wine is a healthy beverage when taken in moderation and preferably with food. The consumer must be told the safe limits -beyond which it is harmful for health.
delWine wishes to congratulate FSSAI and the CEO, Mr Pawan Kumar for the step even though it has come rather late. Better later than never. Jai Ho!
Subhash Arora
It should be clarified that delWine, Indian Wine Academy or the editor are not affected in any case by this ruling or any other, directly or indirectly-before or after. We are well-wishers of the Indian consumers, importers and the producers and would like to see them follow the law but without any ambiguities or causing any unwarranted losses or delays in doing business or the unnecessary and avoidable expenses-editor
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FSSAI Fever: Judgment at Bombay 2015
Victory for Common Sense in PRFJC vs. FSSAI
FSSAI does a Maggi on Jacobs Creek
FSSAI Rejects Food Products for Quality but Wines for Labelling |