High-Risk Food

On 29th November 2024, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) announced the reclassification of packaged drinking and mineral water as high-risk food, requiring stringent annual safety audits.

Key Points

Mandatory Annual Audits: All central license holders for packaged drinking and mineral water must undergo annual third-party food safety audits to ensure compliance with high-risk food safety standards.
Amendments to Regulations: The reclassification follows amendments to the Food Safety and Standards (Prohibition and Restrictions on Sales) Regulations, 2011, which previously eliminated mandatory BIS certification for certain food products.
High-Risk Food Definition Expanded: Packaged drinking and mineral water join other high-risk food categories, such as animal products and foods for specified nutritional use, due to their susceptibility to contamination.
Enhanced Consumer Protection: The move aims to strengthen consumer protection and ensure stricter quality control across the packaged water industry.
Increased Industry Oversight: Food business operators dealing in packaged drinking water, mineral water, and non-alcoholic beverages will now face mandatory inspections as part of this reclassification.