The Supreme Court on Thursday came down heavily on the Central government and the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) over its failure to take a decision on introducing front-of-pack warning labels for packaged food products containing high levels of sugar, salt and saturated fat, saying it would pass further directions if the Centre failed to act.
A bench of Justices JB Pardiwala and K Vinod Chandran said the Court was concerned with protecting the health of citizens, particularly growing children, and questioned the Union’s reluctance to adopt stronger nutritional warnings despite the Court’s earlier directions.
The bench, however, rejected the argument that such concerns should prevent the government from creating greater public awareness about what consumers were eating. During the hearing, senior advocate Maninder Singh, appearing for a manufacturer, sought to make submissions. The issue has also been discussed by Parliament’s Subordinate Legislation Committee, chaired by Shiv Sena Rajya Sabha MP Milind Deora. Deora has advocated studying Singapore’s A-to-D Nutri-Grade system for possible adoption in India.
Because of their fat or salt content, chahar sought to explain the government’s concerns, submitting that strict warning labels could result in traditional Indian foods, including namkeen, carrying a red warning symbol.
The bench told Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Brijender Chahar, appearing for the Union, that the government had to comply with what the Court had asked it to do and questioned whether it was succumbing to pressure from corporate houses. The Court said it was acting in the public interest and not for itself, and asked the Union what steps it had taken so far on the issue. He said international nutritional standards may not be directly applicable to Indian food habits and pointed out that even two eggs could cross the permissible daily fat limit. The Court told him that the issue concerned the health of citizens and that manufacturers could not dictate the policy on the matter. The Court said India should demonstrate to the world that it was serious about protecting the health of its citizens, particularly children.
