FSSAI allows labeling of curd packets with regional names

The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has notified provisions for the omission of the term curd from the Standards of Fermented Milk Products to vide notification dated 11 Jan 2023.

Recently, FSSAI has issued a press release on 30th March 2023 and allowed the use of regional names on curd packets amid the political controversy in Karnataka and Tamil Nadu.

The press note reads, “General Standard for Milk and Milk Products under the ‘Food Safety and Standards (Food Products Standards and Food Additives) Regulations, 2011’ clearly lay down guidelines for the use of the dairy term(s)in the nomenclature of dairy products (milk, milk product or a composite milk product) and related prohibitions for such use in non-dairy products. Accordingly, when the term curd was written along with Dahi in the said regulation, it was restricting its use for non-dairy products.”

“As many representations were received recently on the omission of the term curd, from the Standards of Fermented Milk Products, it has been decided that FBOs may use the term Curd along with any other designation (prevalent regional common name) in brackets on the label.”

FBOs can now label the curd packets with the regional name in brackets. For example- Curd, Dahi in Hindi, Mosaru in Kannada, Zaamut daud or Thayir in Tamil, Perugu in Telugu, and so on.