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GOVERNMENTOFINDIA
MINISTRYOFHEALTH AND FAMILYWELFARE
DEPARTMENTOFHEALTH AND FAMILYWELFARE
LOK SABHA
UNSTARREDQUESTION NO. 3227
TO BE ANSWERED ON07THAUGUST, 2026
SALE OFADULTERATED AND ARTIFICIALPRODUCTS
†3227. DR. BHOLASINGH:
Will the Ministerof HEALTHANDFAMILYWELFAREbe pleasedtostate:
(a) whether the Government has made any arrangement for market monitoring with a view
and grievance redressal with a view to protect consumers against the sale of adulterated,
artificial or counterfeit products in the name of milk, paneer, khoa and other dairy products,
if so, the details thereof;
(b) the number of consumer complaints received regarding the sale of such products during
the last three years along with the action taken by the Government thereon, State/UT-wise;
(c) the action taken by the Government against sellers/manufacturers for marketing
artificial adulterated or adulterated products as pure dairy products or for resorting to
misleading labelling or advertisements, if so, the details thereof;
(d) the provisions for taking stringent action against traders who repeatedly indulge in such
acts; and
(e) the steps taken by the Government to create awareness amongconsumers for identifying
such productsand toensure the availability of pure dairy productsin the market?
ANSWER
THE MINISTEROFSTATE IN THE MINISTRYOFHEALTH AND FAMILY
WELFARE
(SHRIPRATAPRAO JADHAV)
(a) to (e): Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) is mandated to lay down
science-based standards for articles of food and to regulate their manufacture, storage,
distribution, sale and import to ensure availability of safe and wholesome food for human
consumption. The implementation and enforcement of the Food Safety and Standards (FSS)
Act, 2006isa shared responsibility between the Central andStateGovernments.FSSAI has established a robust consumer grievance redressal mechanism for
addressing food safety related complaints. Complaints/concerns of consumers and Food
Business Operators (FBO) are received through various channels such as Web portal, Mobile
App, FSSAI Helpline, State helpline, Twitter, Facebook, etc. Complaints on Food Safety
Connect Portal ispart of the online FoodSafetyCompliance System(FoSCoS). Detailsof the
consumer grievancesfor the last three yearsfor milkandmilkproductsare asunder:
2023-24 2024-25 2025-26*
GrievancesReceived 356 531 846
GrievancesResolved 334 488 635
GrievancesPending
22 43 211
(with StatesandUTs)
*Data isprovisional.
Around 98% of the Food Business Operators (FBOs) fall within the jurisdiction of the
State/UT Food Safety Authorities. For compliance with the standards, limits, and other
statutory requirements prescribed under the FSS Act, 2006 & rules / regulations made
thereunder, the State Food Safety Authorities undertake surveillance, monitoring, targeted
enforcementdrives, inspections, andsampling activitiesacross the food sector.
Any deviation from the prescribed standards or violationof the provisions of the Food
Safety and Standards Regulation (FSSR), when detected, results in stringent regulatory and
punitive action against the non-compliant FBOs in accordance with the FSS Act, 2006 &
rules / regulations made thereunder, including suspension & cancellation of licence,
prohibition on sale, seizure & destruction of non-compliant food articles and judicial action
through adjudication (civil) and prosecution (criminal) as per the provisions outlined in the
FSSAct, 2006.
FSSAI has framed the Food Safety and Standards (Advertising and Claims)
Regulation,2018,toaddressissuesrelatedtomisleadingclaims, labellingandadvertisements.
These regulations have under laid clear specifications for making claims on food businesses.
This regulation stipulates that food-related advertisements and claims are accurate, non-
deceptive,and alignwith food safety standards. It isthe responsibility of the food business to
adhere with these requirements. Details of the action taken against the defaulting Food
Business Operators for non-complianceinthe last 3yearsisasfollows:-
Civil Cases CriminalCases
No. of No. of Samples
Year Samples found non- Decidedwith No. of
Analysed conforming Penalty Convictions
*2025-26 223,808 40023 31878 1918
2024-25 170535 34388 30142 1265
2023-24 170513 33808 29586 1161
*Thedatafor FY2025–26 isprovisional.
FSSAIhastakenfollowing measure tocurbadulterationinthe food products:- FSSAI has launched various campaigns such as “#No To Adulteration” to raise
consumer awareness about food adulteration.These initiativesinclude advertisements,
educationalmaterials, andonline platformstospread awareness.
Videos “How to Check for Adulteration” on its official YouTube channel, which
include short videos demonstrating methods to detect adulteration in various food
items, including milk and milk products, edible oil etc. These Information Education
Communication(IEC) materials are availableinregionallanguages too.
FSSAI is also carrying out an awareness campaign, "#HarLabelKuchKahtaHai", to
empower citizens with label literacy for healthier eating and informed choices. This
initiative educates consumers on key elements like nutritional information (calories,
fats, sugars, protein),ingredientlists, allergen warnings, anddate markings
Advanced, easy to use Rapid Analytical Food Testing (RAPID) Kits are portable and
handheld devices. The Kits do not require any sophisticated equipment or
conventionalreagentsto conductonthe spot tests at fields.
Food Safety Magic Boxes, facilitates the detection of adulteration in food. It consists
of reliable "quick screening tests" thata common person canperform at the household
level. It consists of a total of 107 tests across 06 food categories which include
detection of adulterants like starch, urea, detergent, cellulose, maltodextrin salicylic
acid,glucose etc.
Detect Adulteration with Rapid Test (DART) Booklet coversmore than 44quick tests
for different categories of foods such as milk & milk products, oils & fats, sugars &
confectionery, food grains and their products, spices & condiments to detect
adulteration.
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