FSSAI Proposes Stricter Thresholds for Fat, Sugar and Salt Foods Sold in Schools

NEW DELHI, AUG 11 (IANS) The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has proposed quantitative thresholds to classify food products as high in added fat, added sugar or sodium to tighten norms governing foods sold to children in schools.

In a draft notification published in the Gazette of India, the food regulator proposed amendments to the Food Safety and Standards (Safe Food and Balanced Diets for Children in School) Regulations, 2020.

The draft seeks to introduce a new regulation setting benchmarks for identifying foods high in added fat, sugar or salt, drawing on the Indian Council of Medical Research's (ICMR) Dietary Guidelines for Indians-2024.

Under the proposal, a solid food item will be classified as high in added fat if it contains more than 4.2 grams of added fat per 100 grams, while the threshold for liquid products has been fixed at more than 1.5 grams per 100 millilitres.

For added sugar, the proposed limits are more than 3 grams per 100 grams for solid foods and more than 2 grams per 100 millilitres for liquid products.

Foods will be categorised as high in sodium if they contain more than 0.625 grams of salt per 100 grams in the case of solids and more than 0.175 grams per 100 millilitres for liquids.

The proposed amendment seeks to insert the new provision after the existing regulation on monitoring and surveillance in schools.

According to the notification, the draft regulations have been framed under provisions of the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, with prior approval of the Central government.

FSSAI has invited comments and objections from stakeholders and the public. Suggestions can be submitted within 60 days from the date the gazette notification is made available to the public.

In addition, the regulator said all representations received within the stipulated period would be considered before the rules are finalised.