Food Safety in India

The theme “Food Safety: Science in Action” underscores India’s shift from a basic adulteration-centric approach to a risk-based scientific framework under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006. While progress has been made, challenges persist in localized research, effective risk communication, and phasing out outdated regulations.

Food Safety in India: From Adulteration Control to Science-Based Risk Assessment

Evolution of India’s Food Safety Framework

• Early Focus on Adulteration – PFA Act, 1954: India’s food safety regime began with the Prevention of Food Adulteration Act, which treated all contaminants alike and did not consider the quantity consumed or cumulative exposure, thereby lacking scientific granularity.
• Modernisation through Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006: The enactment of FSSA led to the formation of FSSAI, which adopted Codex-based international standards, such as setting Maximum Residue Limits (MRLs) and Acceptable Daily Intakes (ADI), moving towards a risk-based approach.
• Alignment with Global Norms by 2020: By 2020, India had developed food safety regulations nearly on par with advanced countries. However, this rapid regulatory expansion also exposed weaknesses in local data availability and implementation capacity.

Core Challenges in Scientific Risk Assessment

• Lack of India-Specific Toxicological Data: Risk benchmarks like MRLs and ADIs are based largely on foreign dietary and environmental data, making them unsuitable for India without supporting Total Diet Studies (TDS).
• Ineffective Risk Communication: Scientific measures (e.g., ppm or ppb) are not well communicated to the public, causing confusion and mistrust, such as when MRLs were revised from 0.01 to 0.1 mg/kg.
• Misleading Legacy Labels – Case of MSG: Despite JECFA and global acceptance of MSG as safe, India still mandates misleading warnings, ignoring that glutamates are naturally present in common foods like tomatoes and even in breast milk.

Reform Pathways to Strengthen Food Safety Governance

• Urgent Need for India-Centric Research Infrastructure: Investment in localized toxicological studies, comprehensive TDS, and agro-climatic condition-specific exposure assessments is vital to inform standard-setting and policy.
• Reform of Labelling and Consumer Communication: Scientific risk concepts need to be simplified for public comprehension, and outdated labels like the MSG warning must be replaced with evidence-based information.
• Build Institutional and Public Trust in Risk-Based Regulation: Continuous training of risk assessors, frequent updates of food safety standards, and open engagement with stakeholders are essential to ensure transparent and science-aligned food governance.

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