FSSAI has proposed restricting the manufacture and sale of products marketed as “paneer” when they are made with non-dairy ingredients rather than milk-derived components.
Products already licensed under the “Analogue in Dairy Context” category would have to remove “paneer” from their nomenclature, labelling and marketing.
Stakeholders have been given 60 days to submit objections or suggestions on the draft amendment, as FSSAI steps up enforcement against misleading claims and food-safety violations.
FSSAI Proposes Ban On Manufacturing, Sale Of 'Analogue Product As Paneer'
FSSAI has issued a draft Food Safety and Standards (Prohibition and Restrictions on Sales) Amendment Regulations, 2026
Summary
Food regulator FSSAI has proposed banning the manufacture and sale of 'analogue product as paneer', as it steps up the clampdown on food adulteration and misleading claims.
Analogue paneer is not a dairy product and is made of constituents not derived from milk.
FSSAI has issued a draft Food Safety and Standards (Prohibition and Restrictions on Sales) Amendment Regulations, 2026.
"The amendment is proposed...to restrict manufacturing and sale of analogue product as paneer so as to prevent misleading of consumers regarding the nature and composition of the product," Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) said.
Many states have already banned the manufacturing and sale of analogue paneer.
Products already licensed or registered under 'Analogue in Dairy Context' category should discontinue the use of the term 'paneer' in their nomenclature, labelling or marketing.
FSSAI has given 60 days to stakeholders for objections or suggestions on the draft regulations seeking to amend the Food Safety and Standards (Prohibition and Restrictions on Sales) Regulations, 2011.
In the dairy context, an analogue is a food made to look, taste, or function like milk or a milk product, but with non-dairy ingredients replacing some or all of the real milk components.
In the last six months, the FSSAI has stepped up enforcement actions against food business operators (FBOs) and e-commerce platforms for alleged misleading claims/ labelling and hygiene-related issues, among other violations.
On Wednesday, the regulator initiated penal action against e-commerce platforms Amazon, Swiggy Instamart, BigBasket, Flipkart India and Zepto for various non-compliances, including misleading claims and sale of prohibited products.
It has also cracked down on energy drink makers and alcoholic beverage companies.
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