NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Wednesday directed the Centre to implement food safety norms within three months, specifically mandating the display of critical nutritional information on packaged food labels. The court emphasized that the Centre must finalize amendments to the Food Safety and Standards (Labelling and Display) Regulations, 2020 within this time frame.
“You all have grandchildren? Let the order come, then you’ll know what’s really in Kurkure and Maggi — the packets provide no information,” remarked a bench of Justices J B Pardiwala and R Mahadevan, underscoring concerns over the lack of transparency on food packaging.
The Centre, responding to the court, said that the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) had received over 14,000 public comments on the proposed labeling rules and has already decided to move forward with amending the regulations. On this assurance, the court disposed of the PIL, setting a firm three-month deadline for implementation.
The public interest litigation (PIL) had sought directions for the Centre and state governments to make ‘front-of-package warning labels’ mandatory to inform consumers about potentially harmful ingredients.
The issue dates back to 2014, when FSSAI approved a proposal to require bold and prominent labeling of key nutritional content — including total sugar, salt, and saturated fats — on the front of packaged food items. However, progress has been slow, and the court’s intervention is expected to finally push the long-pending regulation forward.
