India’s food regulator is tightening food safety rules for quick-commerce platforms such as Blinkit, Swiggy Instamart, and Amazon Now. The move comes as the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) expands its crackdown on unsafe practices across the country.
FSSAI CEO Rajit Punhani said e-commerce is the regulator’s next major focus. The authority plans to make online platforms more accountable for the food products they list and sell.
The proposed measures could affect India’s USD 80 billion online retail industry, where groceries account for up to 51 percent of sales, according to Redseer Strategy Consultants.
FSSAI is considering stricter requirements for online food listings, dark kitchens, and dark stores. These measures aim to improve transparency and ensure products are stored under proper conditions.
The proposed requirements include:
The regulator has already taken action against several major platforms, including Blinkit, Instamart, Flipkart, and Amazon’s India unit. Reported violations range from misbranding and invalid licenses to the sale of prohibited items.
Instamart said in July that it was reviewing listings flagged by FSSAI and working with authorities to resolve the issues. Amazon said it removes non-compliant products and confirmed that a flagged product was no longer available on its marketplace.
Punhani said prosecutions involving e-commerce companies had increased five- to sixfold over the past year. While platforms were improving, he said, progress remained slower than expected.
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FSSAI’s enforcement drive also covers food manufacturers, hotels, and restaurants. Regulators are examining advertising, product claims, infant-product marketing, labeling, and food storage practices.
Companies such as Nestlé India, PepsiCo, and Dabur India, along with hotel operators including JW Marriott, have faced regulatory action over reported violations.
The scale of enforcement has also increased. FSSAI conducted about 700,000 inspections between April and September, almost double the number recorded a year earlier, Punhani said.
Maharashtra has emerged as a key center of enforcement, while Jammu and Kashmir, Karnataka, and West Bengal have also stepped up inspections.
The regulator is also reviewing the fast-growing supplements and nutraceuticals industry, particularly products sold online. It is reassessing approvals granted three to five years ago to check whether companies are making claims beyond those permitted.
FSSAI plans to issue notices and suspend licenses where it finds violations. Punhani also said weight-loss claims are not permitted and that the authority was examining trademarks such as “GLP Plus” that could mislead consumers.
However, enforcement faces challenges. Staffing shortages remain a concern, and several major companies, including PepsiCo, Reliance Consumer Products, and Monster Beverage, have challenged FSSAI notices in court.
These companies recently secured an early procedural win after a court found they had not received an adequate opportunity to respond or present their cases. The legal challenges could complicate the regulator’s efforts to enforce stricter standards.
Punhani remains confident that FSSAI can defend its actions, citing consumer support as a key factor. As the crackdown widens, food safety rules could bring significant changes to how online platforms list, market, and store food products in India.
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