The warning label would read ‘High Fat’, ‘High Sugar’, ‘High Salt’ or ‘Highly Sweetened Beverage’ and be displayed in a font one point larger than that used in the nutrition information table on the back of the pack. File photo: Special arrangement.
The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) on Friday (August 28, 2026) submitted in the Supreme Court a proposal to provide information relating to added sugar, fat and salt in pictorial form on the front-of-pack (FOP) of food products, in line with international regulations.
“The proposal is intended to provide a simple, prominent and easily comprehensible warning to consumers regarding food products which are high in specified nutrients of concern,” an FSSAI affidavit filed in the Supreme Court said.
The affidavit proposes an FOP warning label in red hexagonal shape for food products which are high in any two or more “nutrients of concern” such as added saturated fat, added sugar and salt, based on thresholds specified under the Dietary Guidelines for Indians 2024.
The warning label would read ‘High Fat’, ‘High Sugar’, ‘High Salt’ or ‘Highly Sweetened Beverage’ and be displayed in a font one point larger than that used in the nutrition information table on the back of the pack to help customers readily identify at-risk foods.
The FSSAI said single-ingredient food products and those which are “inherently rich in fat, sugar or salt, like ghee, edible oil, jaggery, honey” are proposed to be exempted from FOP warning requirement.
Phased implementation
The affidavit said the FOP labelling mechanism is intended to be implemented in phases to “facilitate consumer acceptability and provide industry adequate time for reformulation”.
Phase I would cover products high in two or more specified nutrients and specified sweetened beverages. Phase II would extend the warning mechanism to products high in any one of these nutrients.
The affidavit in the Supreme Court came in a petition filed by NGO, 3S and Our Health Society, represented by advocate Rajiv Shankar Dvivedi. Mr. Dvivedi said the NGO would file a comprehensive rejoinder to the FSSAI’s compliance affidavit in the apex court after inviting public comments.
The compliance affidavit by the food regulator follows scathing comments on August 13 from a Bench headed by Justice J.B. Pardiwala on the state’s obligations to protect public health. The court had observed that not only developed but even developing countries were adopting international standards of packaging food products.
Bringing awareness
“A positive step in that direction would further accelerate our country’s endeavour to be fully developed, by bringing awareness to the public in general of the ill-effects, emanating even from indigenous foods, despite our conviction that indigenous foods coming from diverse cultures in this country were never intended to be packaged,” the court had recorded in its August 13 order.
The court had noted that the Economic Survey has already suggested FOP labelling, and the Union government would not have any impediments in implementing the changes.
“We are doing this in public interest. Keep it in mind,” Justice Pardiwala had addressed the government on August 13.
Published – August 29, 2026 02:04 am IST
