A new set of norms will soon be introduced by India’s food regulator for pouches, foil containers, bottles and boxes that are used to package food and beverages to address concerns over contamination arising from sub-standard material and the printing on them.
The main objective of the new standards is intended to make food companies more accountable. The current norms, adopted from Bureau of Indian Standards, focus more on labelling than on packaging. The regulator would now have its own set of benchmarks to ensure that all packaging used in food and drinks is safe and can be monitored.
The re-use of tin and plastic containers is not allowed, especially for packaging edible oil and fat and there are specific rules for packaging of products such as milk, milk products, edible oil, fruits and vegetables, canned meat and drinking water.
The new guidelines will be based on a study conducted by the FSSAI and the Indian Institute of Packaging, an autonomous body operating under the Ministry of Commerce & Industry, on the quality of food packaging material manufactured in the country.
The study was conducted since the regulator felt that there is a growing need to assess whether chemicals in food packaging pose health and safety risks and whether current regulations are adequately managing them.
During the study, samples were tested from the organised and unorganised food sectors in New Delhi, Haryana, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Goa, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu for transfer of chemical contaminants into foods.