Business operators sensitised to licence and registration norms under FSSAI Act

Orientation programme by Tiruchi District Micro Entrepreneurs’ Association

Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has educated food business operators (FBO) in the region on the need for securing licence and registration before February 4, 2013.

At an orientation programme organised earlier this month by the Tiruchi District Micro Entrepreneurs’ Association (TIMEA), in association with R.K.Entrepreneurship and Skill Development Centre and Periyar Technology Business Incubator, the FBOs were sensitised to the process of obtaining the licence and knowledge about caring for safety of food for human and animal consumption.

They were taught about packaging, storing, and other aspects.

A senior official of Tamil Nadu Food Safety and Drug Administration, A.Ramakrishnan, explained that FSSAI was a replacement for FPO (Food Products Order), MPO, and Food Adulteration Act. The FSSAI Act, he said, obviates the need for FBOs to obtain a plethora of permissions from various authorities, including health department and local bodies.

Unlike in the past when the enterprises were at the receiving end of the monitoring authorities, the FSSAI would provide guidance to the entrepreneurs and keep them informed of the shortcomings on their part before resorting to any action.

Barring farmers and consumers, those involved in processing and trading in food, including street vendors are covered under the Act. FSSAI covers six regulations pertaining to licensing and registration, packing and labelling, food additives, contamination, sampling and analyses, and prohibition and restriction.

Getting licence was an easy process, Mr.Ramakrishnan informed.

Ranked among the largest food producers, India will benefit substantially from food processing under FSSAI guidelines.

At present, 30 per cent of vegetables and fruits go waste due to lack of storage facilities, C.Ramaswamy Desai, Project Director, Periyar TBI, said.

Prospective entrepreneurs could avail themselves of the benefits accruing from various schemes of the Union Ministry for Food Processing Industries.

The schemes entail 25 per cent subsidy component, Mr.Ramaswamy said. Rise in disposable income reflects in Indians taking to nutritious packaged food, and hence, safety and standardisation were vital, he said, offering the handholding support of Periyar TBI for aspiring entrepreneurs in food sector.

A venture in food production is bound to be profitable, he said.

Explaining about UYEGP and New Entrepreneur Enterprise Development Scheme, Ravindran, Manager, District industries Centre, Tiruchi, said loans from Rs.5 lakh to Rs.1crore could be secured by first-generation entrepreneurs in the age group of 21 to 35 years with a qualification of degree, diploma or ITI.

Subsidy component was 25 per cent to a maximum of Rs.25 lakh. The beneficiaries of the loan scheme were eligible for 3 per cent interest subsidy as well, he said.

Of the 30 projects targeted in Tiruchi district under these schemes, the DIC will process 20 applications and the rest will be scrutinised by the Tamil Nadu Industrial Investment Corporation, Mr.Ravindran said.

S.P.Mohan, director, Tamil Nadu Environmental Federation, also addressed the participants. N.Kanagasabathy, Managing Trustee, R K Trust, presided.

'FSSAI Act obviates the need for food business operators to obtain permissions from various authorities'

FSSAI Advisory on License/Registration of Alcoholic Drinks

Lactic acid in Parle Kaccha Mango Bite safe for consumption: Bombay HC

In a recent hearing at the Bombay High Court, the verdict went in favour of Parle Products Pvt Ltd for its use of lactic acid in Kaccha Mango Bite, based on the construction of the provisions of the Food Safety and Standards Act (FSSA), 2006 and the rules and regulations made thereunder. The verdict established that the lactic acid in hard-boiled candies is absolutely safe for human consumption.
 
A spokesperson for the biscuit-maker, which had moved court against Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Maharashtra, confirmed this, adding that lactic acid is widely used in several food items of daily consumption, including curd, infant milk-based formulations, bread, paneer, processed cheese, milk powder, cream powder, tomato ketchup, squashes, garlic paste, onion paste, ginger paste, etc.

“We are very happy with the development. The day we moved court against FDA Maharashtra, we were sure that the verdict will be in our favour. At Parle we believe in delivering the best to our consumers. All our products go through stringent quality norms, be it the ingredients, processes, packaging material, etc. We have always placed the consumer first and will continue to follow this philosophy in future as well,” he said, on the condition of anonymity.

The spokesperson added, “When our manufacturing units at Nashik and Khopoli were raided and Kaccha Mango Bite worth more than Rs 60 lakh were seized, we took the matter seriously. We put our side forth and also presented the facts about lactic acid to the state food regulator, but they were in no mood to listen. It was an attempt to malign the reputation of the company.”

K B Sankhe, joint commissioner (food), FDA Maharashtra, said, “We have not yet gone through the file yet. Once we go through it we will decide the further course of action.”

Parle to be in marketplace shortly with Mango bites

The yellow and immature colour wrapped candy, Mango Bite a product of Parle was out of a marketplace given mid-October, will again be done available. On Dec 19, a Bombay High Court destined a food and drug administration ( FDA) to recover 39 batches of ‘ Kaccha Mango Bite’ candy to a producer, Parle Biscuits, a section of Parle Products by Feb 1. It also destined recover of seized lactic acid.

The Maharashtra section of FDA, in October, had asked a manufacturer to remember from a marketplace a whole stock, observant it was “unsafe”, after raids by officials of a Konkan multiplication of FDA during Raigadh and Bhiwandi, where finished products and mixture of Rs 2 crore were seized.

FDA officials had purported that a association was regulating buffered lactic acid, an ingredient, that is not available underneath a Food Safety Standards Act, 2006, in Mango Bite, hence a preference to sequence a remember of a product. Following this, Parle Biscuits had filed a petition before a Bombay High Court. The association had afterwards pronounced that lactic poison is protected for tellurian expenditure and that it is widely used in several equipment including bread, processed cheese, divert powder, tomato ketchup, squashes, garlic, onion and ginger paste. The justice had settled that a law was wordless on a lactic acid, and FDA had never instituted movement opposite a manufacturers of these products.

The products in brawl have been made and sole given 2004. This is a initial time movement has been taken. Additional supervision pleader Sandeep Shinde settled that of a 48 seized batches, usually 9 batches contained colour over slight limit. The multiplication dais headed by Justice S J Vazifdar forked out that FSS Act does not discuss lactic poison as a criminialized substance. Further, a justice asked since no movement was taken opposite other manufacturers who use lactic acid.

It is indeed extraordinary that authorities have not taken any movement opposite other manufacturers. Even after holding movement opposite petitioners, identical movement has not been taken opposite any of a other manufacturers. FDA had not indicated if it dictated to take movement opposite other manufacturers even now, a judges said. Interestingly, this was not a initial time when Parle Products has been asked to remember Mango Bite. In 2009 and 2010, a company, that also ranks among a largest biscuit makers in a country, was asked to take a product off emporium shelves since it was regulating colour that was not available underneath a Food Safety Standards Act, 2006.

As per attention estimates, a candy marketplace in India is estimated to be around Rs 3,500 crore in size. Of this, about 70 per cent is sugarine candy, and a remaining 30 per cent is chocolate candy. Besides Parle, some of a other pivotal candy or confectionary players embody Perfetti Van Melle, ITC, Nestle, Ravalgaon, Candico, Cadbury and Lotte.

Traders still evade Food safety ACT

Amritsar, December 25
Only 450 businessmen, dealing in selling, manufacturing food products, have obtained licences under the Food Safety and Standards Act since March this year. Traders, small vendors, will have to get registered or obtain licences under the Act by February 4, otherwise which their units would be declared illegal, said District Health Officer Dr Shivkaran Singh Kahlon.

It is believed that there are more than 5,000 small vendors alone in Amritsar.

In the small business category, the department has got responses from 1500 traders. The District Health Officer said, “Another 400 applications are in the process.”

He said the department had taken various initiatives to create awareness among people. “We had organised a number of camps at various places to make things easier for the businessmen. We will again organising a series of such camps before February 4,” he said.

As per the guidelines issued by the state government, businesses with a turnover of less than Rs 12 lakh were required to get registered with the office of the District Health Officer while those with a turnover above Rs 12 lakh were required to obtain a licence, said Kahlon.

The guidelines are binding on those engaged in the activities related to manufacture, processing, packaging, storage, transportation, distribution, import and catering of food products. Even traders running temporary stalls and karyana stores and selling food ingredients are required to get themselves registered.

Kahlon said the procedure would help the authorities keep an eye on food sellers and manufacturers. The instructions are issued under the Food Safety and Standards Act 2006 which came into effect in the state on August 8, 2011.

Deadline is Feb 4

Traders, small vendors, will have to get registered or obtain licences under the Act by February 4, otherwise which their units would be declared illegal, said District Health Officer Dr Shivkaran Kahlon

Dinamalar