FSSAI product approval is the process by which a product gets approved by the Food Safety and Standard Authority of India. FSSAI product approval is required for products which contains ingredients and/or additives which are not as per prescribed standards in the Food Safety and Standards Act and Regulations. FSSAI product approval is granted at the Central Government level and in this article we look at the procedure for obtaining FSSAI product approval.
FSSAI Online
The FSSAI product approval process used to manual wherein the FSSAI product approval application and a Demand Draft for the prescribed fee had to be submitted to the FSSAI office in New Delhi. However, to cope up with the increase in FSSAI product approval applications and bring in transparency into the system, FSSAI has recently introduced the Food Product Approval System (FPAS). FSSAI product approval application can now be submitted and tracked online through the FSSAI FPAS Online system.
Information Required for FSSAI Product Approval
To make an FSSAI product approval application the following information pertaining to the company and product are required:
- Business Name
- Business Address
- Phone Number
- Manufacturers Address
- Type of Business (Manufacturer / Importer / Retailer / Marketer)
- Product Origin
- Country of Origin
- Existence in the Market
- Common Name
- Brand Name
- Method of Manufacturing
- Claim, if any?
- Shelf Life of the Product
- Pack Size
- Serving Details
- Ingredients Details
In addition to the above information, the following documents must also be submitted in the FSSAI product approval application.
- Label for the food product
- Method of manufacturing
- Accelerated stability datasheet
- Realtime stability datasheet
- End Use Declaration Document
- Certificate of Analysis from NABL Lab
- Undertaking and Form-9
Business Entity Incorporation
FSSAI product approval is an intangible asset for any business, as it provides the business with authority to manufacture or market a certain type of food product in India. Further, each FSSAI product approval is granted only after considerable amount of processing time and involves payment of high processing fees to FSSAI. Therefore, it is recommended that the FSSAI product approval application be made from a corporate entity like Private Limited Company or LLP, so that business can be easily transferred at a later time along with the food product licenses, if required.
Food Business Operator License
A food business operator license is required for businesses that are involved in the manufacturing or handling or selling of food products. While applying for food product approval, a copy of the FSSAI food business operator license certificate must be submitted. Hence, it is recommended that a food business operator license be obtained in the name of the business, if required. IndiaFiling can help you obtain FSSAI Food Business License.
Test Reports
The application for food product approval must be submitted along with certain test reports from NABL accredited labs. The NABL lab reports are used to validate the claims, label claims, ingredients and other parameters of the food product. The type of tests to be conducted for the food product will vary based on the nature of the product. The list of NABL accredited labs in India are as under:
Food Product Label
The FSSAI food product approval application must contain a label of the product. The label can be a prototype and need not be printed. It is important to ensure that the food product label conforms to the FSSAI Food Product Labeling Standards in India.
Submitting the FSSAI Product Approval Application
