NEW DELHI: The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has temporarily prohibited the sale of hing, or asafoetida, manufactured by Everest Food Products and Laljee Godhoo after laboratory tests found the products to be substandard.
The food safety regulator has directed both companies to explain the violations and submit action plans detailing steps they will take to comply with prescribed standards.
They have also been advised to voluntarily recall substandard products already available in the market.
The ban will remain in force until the companies comply with the applicable regulations.
FSSAI also detected non-compliance in Everest’s egg curry masala, chicken masala and garam masala. These three products, however, have not been banned.
Samples Fail Prescribed Standards
FSSAI said it began surveillance of major hing brands following a consumer complaint.
Samples collected from the companies’ manufacturing units in Mumbai and from Everest’s unit in Umbergaon, Gujarat, failed to meet the prescribed standards.
Under existing regulations, compounded hing is required to contain at least 5 per cent alcohol-soluble extract.
Laboratory tests found that the samples contained only 0 to 3 per cent, indicating that the manufacturers were using 30 to 40 per cent less raw hing than required, according to the regulator.
Six varieties of raw hing collected from the Laljee Godhoo unit were also found to contain between 15 and 32 per cent starch, substantially above the permitted maximum of 1 per cent.
Warning Labels Also Proposed
The enforcement action comes as FSSAI has also proposed a bright red, hexagonal warning label on the front of packaged foods containing excessive levels of sugar, salt or saturated fat.
The proposal was placed before the Supreme Court after a Bench led by Justice J B Pardiwala questioned delays in introducing front-of-pack warning labels.
The proposed system is aimed at making high levels of sugar, salt and saturated fat more visible to consumers and helping them make more informed food choices.
