FSSAI’s ‘red colored hexagon’ plan: Which packaged foods could soon carry warnings? | Today’s news
The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has told the Supreme Court that it has proposed to introduce a prominent red warning label on the front of packaged food products that contain high amounts of added saturated fat, added sugar and salt.
The proposed labeling is intended to make it easier for consumers to identify products containing high levels of specific nutrients of concern. FSSAI made the submission in a compliance affidavit filed in the apex court.
The red hexagon warns consumers of high nutrient content
Under the proposed system, a red hexagon warning would appear on the front of food packaging if the product contains high levels of at least two specified nutrients.
“It is proposed to provide a conspicuous warning label in red colored hexagonal shape on the front of the package for food products that are high in any two or more of the following nutrients of concern, namely added saturated fat, added sugar and salt, based on the thresholds set in the Nutrition Guidelines for Indians, 2024 issued by ICMR-NIN,” the affidavit said.
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The warning would include clear statements such as “High fat”, “High sugar”, “High salt” and/or “Highly sweetened drink”, depending on the content of the product. The aim is to enable consumers to identify products with a high content of these nutrients at a glance.
FSSAI suggests a phased rollout
FSSAI said it has prepared a proposal to display information about added sugar, added fat and salt in pictorial form on the front of food packages.
“The warning will appear in a font size one point larger than the size used in the nutritional information table on the back of the package,” he said.
The proposed Front of Pack Nutrition Labeling (FoPNL) system would be implemented in phases. The FSSAI said the phased approach would give consumers time to adjust to the new labels while also giving food companies enough time to reformulate their products.
The first phase would include products that are high in at least two specified nutrients — added fat, added sugar and salt — along with specific sweetened beverages. In a second phase, the warning would also apply to products high in any of these nutrients.
Certain foods have been proposed as exempt
FSSAI has proposed to exempt certain categories of products from the requirement of front of pack warning.
These would include single ingredient food products and foods that are naturally high in fat, sugar or salt such as ghee, edible oil, salt, sugar, jaggery and honey. However, these products would still have to meet other applicable food safety and labeling requirements.
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Under the proposed regulation, a product would be classified as high in fat, sugar and/or salt (HFSS) if it exceeds the nutritional thresholds set by the 2024 Dietary Guidelines for Indians issued by the National Institute of Nutrition (ICMR-NIN).
The proposal follows the intervention of the Supreme Court
The affidavit was submitted following the Supreme Court’s August 13 order in a case relating to mandatory Front of Pack Warning Labels (FOPL) on packaged food.
The petition was filed by a public charity ‘3S and Our Health Society’ seeking directions to the Centre, States and Union Territories to make front-of-pack warning labels mandatory for packaged food products.
During the hearing on August 13, a bench of Justices JB Pardiwala and K Vinod Chandran criticized the FSSAI for the delay in introducing warning stickers and questioned whether the government “does not want its people to be healthy”.
Red hexagon on the front of the package
The FSSAI said the proposed information will be displayed inside the “red hexagon” on the front of the food package in the prescribed format.
“The proposed approach is intended to address the need for an efficient and consumer-friendly FoP labeling mechanism and to facilitate informed food choices, particularly in relation to children and other vulnerable population groups,” reads the affidavit.
The authority clarified that the proposed system will have to go through a prescribed regulatory process before it becomes mandatory.
“It is appropriate to state that the same will be notified by amending the relevant regulations by following the prescribed procedure,” it said.
(With inputs from news agency PTI)
