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- INTRODUCTION
Veganism eliminates the usage of animal products or by-products
in one’s daily lifestyle, including the consumption of certain
food, such as dairy produce, whey, gelatin, etc. Vegan foods are
those foods that are manufactured by avoiding any ingredients that
may have contributed to animal exploitation and cruelty during
production.
- FOOD SAFETY AND STANDARDS (VEGAN FOODS) REGULATIONS,
2022
The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India
(“FSSAI“) under the Ministry of Health
and Family Welfare, vide its powers under Section 92(2)(v) of the
Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 (“FSS
Act“) issued a notification on June 10, 2022
giving effect to the Food Safety and Standards (Vegan Foods)
Regulations, 2022 (“Vegan Food
Regulations“)1.
The FSSAI monitors and enforces food quality and hygiene in
India. In acknowledgment of the escalating demand for vegan food,
the FSSAI has included the Vegan Food Regulations within the
purview of its existing regulations for vegetarian and
non-vegetarian food products.
The Vegan Food Regulations define the term “vegan
food” as: “the food or food ingredient,
including additives, flavourings, enzymes and carriers, or
processing aids that are not products of animal origin and in
which, at no stage of production and processing, ingredients,
including additives, flavourings, enzymes and carriers, or
processing aids that are of animal origin has been used.“
2
- REQUIREMENTS UNDER THE VEGAN FOOD
REGULATIONS
Food Business Operators (“FBOs“)
refer to persons who own, operate, or are otherwise responsible for
assuring compliance of food businesses with the FSS Act and its
associated regulations. The Vegan Food Regulations require all FBOs
engaged in the production, processing, packaging, sale, and
marketing of vegan food to conform to the requirements set out in
the Vegan Food Regulations in line with Good Manufacturing
Practices, to avoid making any misleading claims about non-vegan
ingredients in such products.
If there is a common production line for vegan and non-vegan
products or ingredients, a complete cleaning method or
“comparable measures” must be undertaken for all related
machinery, equipment, utensils, and surfaces prior to the
preparation of vegan products. Similar care and precautions must be
ensured during the process of preparation and packaging of vegan
foods.
Most importantly, vegan foods must not involve animal testing
for any purpose, even for safety trials. To ensure strict
compliance with the Vegan Food Regulations, traceability shall also
be established “up to the level of the manufacturer” and
FBOs must comply with any other requirements specified from time to
time by the relevant food authority to preserve the authenticity of
vegan foods or vegan food ingredients or products thereof.
For packaging and labelling of vegan products, FBOs must clearly
distinguish vegan products from other foods. The packaging and
labelling requirements must be in accordance with the Food Safety
and Standards (Labelling and Display) Regulations.3
Following approval, every packaging of vegan goods shall include
the FSSAI-specified logo, i.e.:
- IMPORTING VEGAN FOOD
To import any vegan products into India, FBOs must apply to the
licencing authority and provide all pertinent information about the
vegan food product. Any vegan food item
being imported must also be accompanied by a certificate
issued by recognised authorities of the exporting country, in the
format prescribed by FSSAI.
- LEGAL STATUS OF ‘VEGANISM’ ACROSS THE
GLOBE
The European Union
The European Commission through the Stakeholders Suggestions
relating to Health and Safety4 identified that the
absence of legally binding definitions for the terms
“vegan” and “vegetarians“
cause a problem during any attempt to regulate the commercial
chains that have begun labelling their products as vegan/vegetarian
and use self-developed logos. The EU Food Information Regulation
still awaits the enforcement of an act to define vegan laws and the
requisite regulations.
At present, the European Union has equality laws, prohibition
against discrimination, right to life, and healthy environment laws
in place to protect veganism by interpreting it under
“religion and belief” under the European Convention on
Human Rights.
In the case of Mr J Casamitjana Costa v. The League Against
Cruel Sports5, the claimant’s vegan rights were
protected as ‘philosophical belief’ under the Equality Act,
2010.
- ISO CERTIFICATION
The International Organization for Standardization’s (ISO)
newest project, ISO 23662:2021, has developed a new standard for
classifying vegan and vegetarian products, thus providing customers
with assurance in their product choices. The text defines technical
standards relevant to all FBOs. The document is designed for
use in B2B engagements, collaborations within the global food
supply chain, international trading of food goods, as well as
labelling and claims for food products. This initiative will create
a level playing field at the domestic and international level and
enforce fair practices among all food businesses.
Footnotes
1 Notification F. No. Std/TF-Vegan Foods/Notif/FSSAI,
‘the Food Safety and Standards (Vegan Foods) Regulations,
2022’, accessed at:
2 Regulation 2(a) of The Food Safety and Standards (Vegan
Foods) Regulations, 2022.
3 ‘Food Safety and Standards (Labelling and Display)
Regulations, 2020], accessed at
https://www.fssai.gov.in/upload/uploadfiles/files/Compendium_Labelling_Display_23_09_2021.pdf
4 Stakeholder Suggestions – Part 2, XI- Health
& Food Safety, European Commission, accessed at:
https://ec.europa.eu/info/sites/default/files/health_food_safety_part2.pdf
5 Mr J Casamitjana Costa v. The League Against Cruel
Sports, Case No. 3331129/2018, accessed at:
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