FSSAI (Food Safety and Standards Authority of India): notes for bank exams

At a glance

FSSAI is the statutory body that sets science-based standards for food in India and regulates how food is made, stored, sold and imported. It writes the rules — including what a label may claim — while state food safety officials enforce them on the ground.

Key facts

Set up: 2008 (established 5 September 2008)
Law: Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 (established under Section 4)
Administrative ministry: Ministry of Health and Family Welfare
Head office: New Delhi
Composition: a Chairperson and 22 members, one-third of whom must be women (Section 5)
Licensing: every food business needs FSSAI registration or a licence; the 14-digit number is printed on packaged food
Enforcement in states: Commissioners of Food Safety and food safety officers
Flagship campaign: Eat Right India, launched 10 July 2018 (pillars: "Eat Healthy" and "Eat Safe")
Bread labelling: "whole wheat bread" needs at least 75% whole wheat flour; "brown bread" or "wheat bread" at least 50%

How it works

Standards: FSSAI notifies regulations on product standards, additives, contaminants, packaging, and labelling and display.
Licensing: Food businesses get basic registration, a state licence or a central licence depending on size and type of activity.
Enforcement: State Commissioners of Food Safety and their officers inspect, sample and prosecute; FSSAI's own role is mainly standard-setting and oversight.
Awareness: Eat Right India nudges businesses to reformulate products and consumers to choose safer, healthier food.

FSSAI vs CCPA — who acts on a false food claim?

	FSSAI	CCPA
Law	Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006	Consumer Protection Act, 2019
Ministry	Health and Family Welfare	Consumer Affairs (Department of Consumer Affairs)
Main job	Sets food standards and labelling rules	Acts against misleading ads and unfair trade practices
Started	2008	24 July 2020

The two overlap: a claim that breaks an FSSAI labelling standard can also be a misleading advertisement, which the CCPA can penalise.

Recent developments

22 Oct 2026: The CCPA fined Britannia Industries ₹1 lakh for advertising a bread as "100% Whole Wheat Bread" when whole wheat flour made up only about 62% of it, below the 75% minimum in the food-labelling rules. It must stop the ads and file a compliance report within 15 days.

Exam traps

FSSAI is under the Health Ministry, not the Ministry of Food Processing Industries or Consumer Affairs.
The Act is of 2006; the Authority was set up in 2008.
In the Britannia case the penalty came from the CCPA (consumer law), while the 75% standard comes from FSSAI's labelling rules.
"Brown bread" (50%) and "whole wheat bread" (75%) have different thresholds.

Quick check

Q: Under which Act was FSSAI set up? A: The Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006.
Q: Which ministry administers FSSAI? A: Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.
Q: Minimum whole wheat flour for a "whole wheat bread" label? A: 75%.

FSSAI (Food Safety and Standards Authority of India)