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FSSAI Registration gets strict about the sale of organic food
Companies not sticking to standards will be prosecuted.
From July 2018 every organic food needs to be properly labeled.
The sale of organic foods has seen a steady rise over the last couple of years as people have become more health-conscious. If you are also a fan of organic foods, then you might be surprised to know that all companies that claim to sell organic foods are not genuine. There are companies that are selling so-called organic foods without any certification or approval from the FSSAI. The organization is planning to weed out such sellers soon.
Lack of FSSAI Registration
Most of the companies that claim they sell organic foods have been fooling people as there is no certification or regulation available that it needs to go through. They sell organic foods at a higher price without proper certification from FSSAI.
The New Move
According to FSSAI, the companies which are not sticking to set standards will be prosecuted, and from July 2018, if anyone is selling organic food that is not appropriately labeled, it would come under the heading of illegal. The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India has also issued regulations that will require food companies claiming to sell organic foods to get certified by either the Participatory Guarantee System for India (PGS India) or National Programme for Organic Production (NPOP).
The Logo
Companies that are actually selling organic foods need to mark the produce as organic by getting a voluntary logo from the FSSAI. Till now, getting certification from PGS India or NPOP was mostly voluntary, but this is going to change soon. The foods will be labeled authentic after a thorough and rigorous investigation. If a company claims to sell organic foods, it needs to ensure that everything from soil, air, seed is organic; only then will the product be labeled as organic.
CEO’s Opinion
Pawan Aggrawal who serves as the CEO of FSSAI has stated that any company which claims to sell organic foods but is not sticking to standards can be prosecuted.
The Notification
A notification was published in the Gazette on January 2 which stated that labels on the package of organic food should convey accurate and complete information on the organic status of the product. The product should also carry a quality assurance or certification mark of PGS India or NPOP as well as an organic logo by FSSAI. These rules were made after about a year of sending out drafts for public comments.
NPOP’s Efforts
For about two decades, organic farming certification was put into effect via a process of third-party certification that fell under NPOP. It was handled by the Ministry of Commerce and was primarily used for certifying general exports only. About 24 agencies were authorized by NPOP to verify processing units, farms, and storage. Only the companies that were successful got a special ‘India Organic’ logo.
PGS India’s Efforts
The PGS Indian programme began about two years back, and it involves a peer-to-peer approach. In this program, farmers were responsible for certifying whether the organic farmers were adhering to organic-cultivation practices or not. This program was implemented by the Ministry of Agriculture via the National Centre of Organic Farming.
The Reality
In India, only 1.7 percent of the area is under organic farming, and certified and tested organic products are labeled with an FSSAI’s logo known as “JAIVIK BHARAT.”
For more queries on FSSAI registrations, you can discuss them with our expert consultant. Get in touch here.
Unit sale price states the price (inclusive of all taxes) per unit of measurement as stated in Rule 6 sub-rule (11) of the Legal Metrology Packaged Commodities Amendment Rules, 2022.
“(11) The unit sale price in rupees, set out to the nearest two decimal places, shall be declared on every pre-packaged commodity in the following manner, namely:-
- Per gram where net quantity is less than one kilogram and per kilogram where net quantity is more than one kilogram.
- Per centimetre where net length is less than one metre and per metre where net length is more than one metre.
- Per millilitre where net volume is less than one litre and per litre where net volume is more than one litre.
- per number or unit if any item is sold by number or unit:
Note:
Stated that for packages commodity containing spirituous liquor or alcoholic beverages, the State Excise Laws and the rules made thereunder shall be applicable within the State in which it is manufactured. Stated that declaration of the unit sale price is not obligatory for the pre-packaged commodities in which retail sale price is equal to the unit sale price.”
The unit sale price shall be declared on the primary display panel of the pre-packaged commodity. It should be confirmed that the unit sale price is unambiguous, simply identifiable and legible to the consumer
Illustration:
For a pre-packaged commodity of Net Qty 200g and MRP including all taxes of ₹60, Unit Sale Price declaration can be specified as given hereinbelow:
- MRP ₹ (incl. of all taxes); USP ₹ 60; ₹ 0.30/g
- MRP ₹ (incl. of all taxes); USP ₹ 60; ₹ 0.30 per g
- MRP ₹ (incl. of all taxes) ₹ 60; USP ₹ 0.30/g
- MRP ₹ (incl. of all taxes) ₹ 60; USP ₹ 0.30 per g
- MRP ₹ (incl. of all taxes) ₹ 60; USP ₹ /g ₹ 0.30
- MRP ₹ (incl. of all taxes) ₹ 60; USP ₹ per g ₹ 0.30
For a pre-packaged commodity of Net Qty 5L and MRP inclusive of all taxes of ₹500, Unit Sale Price declaration can be specified as given hereinbelow:
- MRP ₹ (incl. of all taxes); USP ₹ 500; ₹ 100.00/L
- MRP ₹ (incl. of all taxes); USP ₹ 500; ₹ 100.00 per L
- MRP ₹ (incl. of all taxes) ₹ 500; USP ₹ 100.00/L
- MRP ₹ (incl. of all taxes) ₹ 500; USP ₹ 100.00 per L
- MRP ₹ (incl. of all taxes) ₹ 500; USP ₹ /L ₹ 100.00
- MRP ₹ (incl. of all taxes) ₹ 500; USP ₹ per L ₹ 100.00
As per Rule 6 and sub-rule 11, the Unit sale price is required to be indicated in rupees, rounded off to the adjacent two decimal places.
Illustration: as declared in response to question no. 2
The spacing condition under Rule 8 of the LMPC Rules, 2011 is not applicable for the Unit Sale Price declaration.
Option 1: The Font size for declaring the Unit Sale Price should be at least 50% of the font size of the MRP declaration. For Example, if the height of the numeral for MRP declaration is 4mm then the height of the numeral for Unit Sale Price declaration cannot be less than 2mm.
Unit sale price is not obligatory to be declared on a ‘Wholesale Package’ as stated in Rule 2(r) of LMPC Rules, 2011.
No, as per Rule 6 sub-rule 10 of the LMPC Rules, 2011, the e-commerce company is required to make sure obligatory declaration as declared in Rule 6 sub-rule 1. Accordingly, the unit sale price is not compulsory to be displayed on e-commerce websites.
No, the requirement of the Unit Sale Price declaration is only limited to product labels. Hence, the Unit Sale Price is not obligatory to be declared in advertisements.
As per the 2nd proviso to Rule 6 sub-rule (11) of unit sale price declaration is not required for the pre-packaged commodities where MRP or retail sale price is equal to the unit sale price.
Hence, pre-packaged commodities in which the net quantity/ length is one gram, one meter, one kilogram, one millilitre, one centimetre, one litre and one unit/number shall not be required to state the Unit Sale Price.
Yes, the Unit Sale Price needs to be declared, but the Unit Sale Price computation shall eliminate the additional volume/units/ quantity being offered for FREE.
An indicative label declaration is given below
CONTENTS:10 N (generic name of commodity) + 1 Free
MRP ₹ (incl. of all taxes):USP ₹ 400; ₹ 40.00 /1N + 1N Free
Net Qty:5 L + 1 L Free
MRP ₹ (incl. of all taxes):USP ₹ 1000; ₹ 200.00/ L + 1L Free
The Unit Sale Price is not needed to be declared on the inner package, however, the outer package must contain all declarations stated under the Rules along with the Unit Sale Price.
Yes, the Unit Sale Price is needed to be declared. Mostly, in such cases, the Unit Sale Price can be calculated by dividing the post-offer MRP (inclusive of all taxes) by the Net Quantity.
An indicative label declaration is given below.
CONTENTS:10N (generic name of a commodity)
MRP ₹ (incl. of all taxes):₹ 400 ₹ 360; ₹ 36.00 /1N
Yes, the Unit Sale Price is needed to be declared on the pack projected for sale, however, the Unit Sale Price computation shall eliminate the value of the product being offered for FREE. It is declared that there is no need of declaring the Unit Sale Price for a Free product.
An indicative label declaration is given below.
Net Qty:900 ml + 1 N (generic name of a commodity) Free MRP (incl. of all taxes).
USP ₹ 180 ₹ 0.20/ml + 1 N of (generic name of commodity) worth ₹ ___ Free
Pre-packaged commodities having a surface area of 100 square centimetres or less OR having MRP of ₹ 35 or less shall not be obligatory to declare Unit Sale Price.
In case of any queries please feel free to connect with our Legal Metrology Professionals. They have years of experience in providing end-to-end consulting services and also assist in obtaining Legal Metrology Registration.