FSSAI extends food licensing, registration deadline to February 4, 2015

Ashwani Maindola, New Delhi The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), the country’s apex food regulator, has extended the deadline for obtaining licences and securing registration for food business operators (FBOs) in the country under the Food Safety and Standards Regulations (FSSR), 2011, by six months. The new deadline is February 4, 2015. 

The current deadline lapsed on August 4, 2014, following which it was decided to accord extension. With the nod of the competent authority, the regulator issued a notice in this regard, which stated that the timeline mentioned in Sub-regulation 2.1.2 of Food Safety and Standards (Licensing and Registration of Food Businesses) Regulations, 2011, has been extended by six months. 

However, questions are being raised about the effectiveness of the Regulations in the backdrop of several extensions accorded to the deadline for securing licences and ensuring registration, because a period of five years was given in order to overcome various issues, before the implementation of the Act, which was passed in Parliament in 2006. Originally, a year was prescribed in the Act for securing licences and ensuring registration by FBOs, but three years have passed, and the task remains incomplete.

From among 5 crore FBOs across the country, only 25 lakh have completed the procedure. When contacted, health ministry officials informed that FSSAI has been allowed to extend the deadline. As far as the conversion of licences was concerned, Maharashtra was the leader, with over 1.51 lakh licences converted. It is pertinent to mention here that the fate of extension of the deadline was hanging in the balance due to the recent observation made by Bombay High Court regarding advisories issued by FSSAI, and confusion prevailed, because that was termed ‘not the way to function’. 

However, in this regard, during a recent interaction with the industry in New Delhi, K Chandramouli, chairman, FSSAI, stated that final judgment was awaited along with its full interpretation.And, hence,the extension was accorded as per the usual practice. FBOs, meanwhile, were relieved upon receiving the news regarding the extension. They were previously fearing a crackdown by FSSAI in the event of their failure to obtain licences or ensure registration, as per FSSR 2011.