India is stepping up enforcement against food-safety violations as regulators investigate problems across the country’s large packaged-food industry. Recent investigations have highlighted concerns including misleading labels, altered expiry information, unhygienic manufacturing conditions and differences in nutritional formulations between products sold in India and other countries.
The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) and state authorities have been increasing inspections and enforcement action. Maharashtra has emerged as an important centre of this crackdown, with thousands of raids conducted under the state’s food-safety enforcement programme.
The issue has also renewed discussion about front-of-pack warning labels that could make it easier for consumers to identify products containing high levels of sugar, salt or other ingredients. However, proposals for stronger labelling requirements have faced opposition and legal challenges from sections of the food industry.
Reuters reported that around 20% of food samples tested annually since 2020 have been found to be unsafe or incorrectly labelled.
The crackdown is particularly important as quick-commerce platforms, packaged foods and energy drinks continue to expand rapidly in India. Stronger enforcement could help consumers make better-informed choices while encouraging manufacturers to maintain higher safety and labelling standards.
