Another extension for the compliance of the Legal Metrology (Packaged Commodities) (Amendment) Rules 2022

Once again, an extension has been granted to the manufacturer, importer, and packers for complying with the amendments brought into the Legal Metrology (Packaged Commodities) Rules, 2011.

The Department of Consumers Affairs of India vide its Notification No. G.S.R. 60(E) dated 27th January 2023 issued the Legal Metrology (Packaged Commodities) Amendment (Amendment) Rules, 2023, pursuant to which the ‘Legal Metrology (Packaged Commodities) (Amendment) Rules, 2022’, now will come into effect from 1st April 2023 instead of 1st February 2023.

The said notification is again in favor of the manufacturer, importer, and packer. For the packer, manufacturer, importer, etc. who have still not gotten rid of their old stock of products, this prolongation is even further comfortable. Again, the industries will benefit from this extension.

Regulatory standards for basmati rice to come into force from august 2023

The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (“FSSAI”) for the first time under its Notification No. F. No. Std/Notification/35.1/2021, on 12th January 2023, specified the identity standards for Basmati Rice (including Brown Basmati Rice, Milled Basmati Rice, Parboiled Brown Basmati Rice, and Milled Parboiled Basmati Rice). This initiative is taken to ensure fair trade practices and check adulteration.

According to a press release, these standards are aimed to establish fair practices in the trade of Basmati Rice and protect consumer interest, both domestically and globally.

Basmati, generally due to its premium quality fetches a higher price higher than the non-basmati varieties of rice, therefore, chances of various types of adulteration for economic gains which may inter alia include, the undeclared blending of other non-basmati varieties of rice. Hence, in order to ensure the supply of genuine Basmati Rice in domestic and export markets, the Food Authority has notified regulatory standards for Basmati Rice.

These standards specify various identity and quality parameters for Basmati. These parameters require that the Basmati Rice should possess the natural fragrance characteristic of Basmati Rice and be free from artificial coloring, polishing agents, and artificial fragrances, as per the standards.

Further, these standards also specify various identity and quality parameters for Basmati Rice such as the average size of grains and their elongation ratio after cooking, maximum limits of moisture, amylose content, uric acid, defective/damaged grains, and incidental presence of other non-basmati rice, etc.

These Regulations are referred to as the Food Safety and Standards (Food Products Standards and Food Additive) First Amendment Regulation 2023. They shall come into Force on 1st August 2023.

Instant renewal of license/registration

By virtue of the order dated 11th January 2023, bearing File No- 15(31)2020/FoSCoS/RCD/FSSAIpt1-Part (4), henceforth all the renewal of License/ Registration upon submission of the application, by the FBO, will be granted instantly without requiring the scrutiny/approval of the concerned authority.

The License/Registration is granted to the Food Business Operators (“FBOs”) ranging from 1- 5 years, based on the selection made by them. After the expiry of their licenses, FBOs were required to renew their License/ Registration by submitting the application, along with necessary documents. Thereafter the authority would scrutinize the application. The said scrutiny required additional time and effort, which in result in time consuming process. Therefore, in order to facilitate a fast mechanism for renewal of License/Registration the authority has now excluded the process of scrutiny/approval of the concerned authority.

The conditions applicable to the above are as under:

1. No change in the existing details of the license/registration shall be allowed.
2. Validity of the Renewal:
   • For License: This renewal of the license shall be for 1 year only.
   • For Registration: Renewal shall continue as per existing provision i.e., for 1-5 years, based on the selection and payment made by the FBO in the application.
3. FBOs whose licenses/ registrations have been suspended/canceled, shall not be allowed to renew their license/registration.
4. Further, w.e.f 10th November 2022, the Food Safety Compliance System (“FoSCoS”) system ensures that FBO (Manufacturers and Importers) shall file annual returns with penalties (if any), before renewal, for FY 2021-22 onwards.
5. A declaration to be submitted by Food Business Operator (tick in the checkbox) has been added in FoSCoS as follows:
   • I/We have complied with all the permissions/rules, which are applicable to my food business and the premises of the food business such as CGWA NOC etc.
   • I/We do not possess more than one active license/ registration for any other food business(es) at the same premises.

Validity of the New License and Registration:

1. The license validity is now restricted to only 1 year instead of the existing provision;
2. The Registration validity continues to be as per the existing provision i.e., for 1-5 years, based on the selection and payment made by the FBOs.

Late fee mechanism:

1. No late fee: If the renewal application for the license is filed in the last 30 days prior to expiry.
2. Penalties: The penalties levied for applying renewal of expired license/ registration upto 180 days after the date of expiry will continue.

From now the window for renewal of license and registration is available as early as 180 days prior to expiry date. To avoid the eventual penalty (due to expiry) FBOs are advised to apply within stipulated time.

This order has become applicable from 12th January 2023.

Misleading products in the name of “Vegan-Ghee Butter”

It has been noticed by the authorities that certain products are being deceptively sold as “Vegan-Ghee”, however as per the provisions of Food Safety and Standards (Vegan Foods) Regulation 2022, Ghee, Butter, etc. cannot be claimed to be Vegan Food and use of Vegan Food claim and Vegan Logo are permitted only after the prior approval of the Food Authority.

The Authority has further noticed that FBOs are marketing products on E-commerce Platform/websites which are of non-animal origin and are usually the blend/mixture of two or more edible oils/hydrogenated facts and naturally identical flavors etc. as vegan products without following the proper procedure prescribed by the authority.

Hence, in view of the above, authority has passed an order for initiation action against such FBOs who are using such plant-based products as Ghee, Butter, etc., or making claims for Vegan Foods logo without prior approval of the Food Authority, as per the FSS Act, 2006 and Rules & Regulations made thereunder.

Import of high-risk food products at specific ports

The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (Trade and International Cooperation Division-TICD), vide its Notification No. F. No: TIC-B05/5/2022-IMPORTS-FSSAI dated 11th January 2023, has issued a notice about Import of High Risk Food Products at specific ports. The notification is effective from 1st March 2023.

This notification consists of a list of all the high-risk products and the Point of entry from each state of India. As stated in the notification, the said list is dynamic and will be updated from time to time.

The list of high-risk products consists of Milk and Milk products, Egg powder, Meat and Meat Products including Poultry, Fish and their products, Foods for Infant nutrition/ Infant Foods, Nutraceuticals, Health Supplements, foods for Dietary uses, Probiotic and Prebiotics foods, Foods for Special Medical Purpose.

Reduction of the initial application fee for FSSAI License

The Food Authority has decided to reduce the initial application fee for FSSAI license to Rs. 1000/- plus GST (as applicable). This initiative has been taken by the authority to promote new businesses/Startups and provide ease in obtaining FSSAI License.

It is crucial to note that the total license fee that needs to be submitted by the FBO is the same as mentioned under Schedule 3 of FSS (Licensing and Registration of Food Businesses) Regulations, 2011, and it is only the application fee that is bifurcated into Rs. 1000 and the differential amount of the License fee (i.e., total applicable license fee minus Rs. 1000 [already paid as initial application fee] along with the GST [as applicable]), as mentioned in the order dated 10th January 2023, issued by the Regulatory Compliance Division under File No. RCD-01003/2/2022-Regulatory-FSSAI.

Firm news

1. Link Legal (currently Dentons Link Legal) has been ranked across practice areas in the latest Chambers and Partners Global 2023 Rankings. Read more
2. Our Executive Chairman, Atul Sharma and Managing Partners, Nusrat Hassan and Anand Srivastava have been highly ranked in their respective practice areas in the prestigious Chambers and Partners Global 2023 Rankings. Read more
3. Link Legal (currently Dentons Link Legal) has been ranked in Aviation, Banking & Finance, Corporate and M&A, Dispute Resolution: Litigation, Projects & Energy, Antitrust and Competition, Restructuring & Insolvency, TMT, Private Equity and Investment Funds, Life Sciences & Healthcare. Labour & Employment practice is also recognized as a Firm to Watch in The Legal 500 Asia-Pacific 2023 Rankings. Read more
4. Our Executive Chairman, Managing Partners, Partners and Associate Partner have been recognised as “Recommended Lawyers” in their respective practice areas in The Legal 500 (Legalease) Asia-Pacific 2023 Rankings. Read more
5. Our Partner, Abhishek Sharma and Associate Partners, Ambuj Sonal and Pradnesh Warke have been recognised as “Next Generation Partners” in their respective practice areas in The Legal 500 (Legalease) Asia-Pacific 2023 Rankings. Read more
6. Our Executive Chairman, Atul Sharma, Managing Partners, Nusrat Hassan and Anand Srivastava and Partner, Milind Jha have been recognised as “Leading Individuals” in their respective practice areas in The Legal 500 (Legalease) Asia-Pacific 2023 Rankings. Read more
7. A warm welcome to Prashanth Sabeshan who has joined as a Partner in the Firm’s Infrastructure and Corporate practice groups in Bangalore. Read more
8. Our Partner, Dr Rajesh K Sehgal has been featured in the ALB India Magazine, January/February 2023 issue. Read more

Awards & recognition

1. Ranked highly in various practice areas such as Aviation, Projects, Infrastructure, Energy, Construction, Banking & Finance, Corporate and M&A, Dispute Resolution, International Arbitration, Competition/ Antitrust, Restructuring & Insolvency, Capital Markets, Labour & Employment, Private Equity, Real Estate and TMT by Chambers and Partners, The Legal 500, RSG, Benchmark Litigation, India Business Law Journal, Asian Legal Business, IFLR1000, Asialaw, among others.
2. Partners of the Firm are highly ranked by leading global publications including Chambers and Partners, The Legal 500, Benchmark Litigation, India Business
3. Law Journal, Asian Legal Business, IFLR1000, and Asialaw, among others.
4. Ranked in Construction, Energy, Infrastructure, Aviation, Banking & Finance, Banking & Financial Services, Restructuring & Insolvency, Corporate and M&A,
5. Dispute Resolution, Capital Markets, Competition/ Antitrust, Private Equity, Real Estate and TMT by Asialaw Profiles 2023.
6. Winner in Aviation, and Infrastructure & Project Finance at India Business Law Journal’s 2022 Indian Law Firm Awards.
7. Top Law Firm (Above 10 years’ experience) across practice areas including Alternate Dispute Resolution – Arbitration/Mediation, Infrastructure & Projects,
8. Project Finance, Joint Venture, M&A, PE & VC, and Restructuring, Insolvency & Bankruptcy in the Forbes India Legal Powerlist 2021.
9. Recognized as one of the Largest Law Firms in India in Asian Legal Business Asia's Top 50 Largest Law Firms 2021 list.
10. M&A Law Firm of the Year and Insolvency & Bankruptcy Code Law Firm of the Year Awards at The IDEX Legal Awards 2021.
11. Infrastructure & Project Finance Law Firm of the Year Award at Legal Era Indian Legal Awards 2020-21.
12. Ranked as one of the Top 10 Law Firms in India in the M&A League Table by VCCEdge.
13. Ranked as one of the Top 10 Law Firms in India in the M&A League Table by Venture Intelligence.
14. Ranked #13 in Top Ranked Law Firms: India by Top Ranked Legal 2020 for Aviation, Banking & Finance, Capital Markets, Competition/ Antitrust, Corporate/
15. M&A, Dispute Resolution, Labour and Employment, Projects, Restructuring and Insolvency, and TMT.

Disclaimer:

The contents of this newsletter are intended for information purposes only. Parts of this newsletter are based on news reports and have not been independently verified. The newsletter is not like a legal opinion or advice and should not be treated as such. Dentons Link Legal (formerly Link Legal) does not warrant the accuracy and completeness of this newsletter, and readers are encouraged to seek professional advice before acting upon any of the information provided therein. In no event will Dentons Link Legal (formerly Link Legal) be liable for any loss whatsoever arising out of the use of or reliance on the contents of this newsletter. This newsletter is the exclusive copyright of Dentons Link Legal (formerly Link Legal) and may not be circulated, reproduced, or otherwise used by the intended recipient without the prior permission of its originator.