To handhold food startups so that they adhere to the highest food quality standards
The Plant Based Foods Industry Association (PBFIA), a CEO-led body formed to support and help develop India’s nascent plant-based food ecosystem, has urged the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) to come up with an effective training programme to help plant-based food startups climb the high bar set by FSSAI to safeguard consumer interest.
Sanjay Sethi, Executive Director, PBFIA, appealed to FSSAI and other stakeholders to handhold food startups so that they adhere to the highest food quality standards as already achieved by big food FMCG companies.
Arun Singhal, CEO of FSSAI, stated that as a regulatory body, they want to raise awareness about plant-based foods and support training programmes. In this regard, they seek support from the Plant Based Foods Industry Association and have asked them to submit a proposal on effective measures to help increase awareness and effective training programmes.
Sanjay Sethi told FSSAI that, “Since the vegan standard would be new, we must train and handhold plant-based startup entrepreneurs to build the capacity to fully comply with the requirements of the standard.”
Bhaskar Narayan, Advisor, FSSAI clarified that it is not that only FSSAI officials would be required to certify the vegan foods, he said just like organic standard, here too, third party certification procedures have been prescribed which would be a hassle-free process.