FSSAI proposes nationwide restrictions on analogue paneer

India’s Food Safety and Standards Authority of India has proposed nationwide restrictions on manufacturing and selling analogue products as paneer, including a requirement that products in the Analogue in Dairy Context category stop using “Paneer” in their names, labels or marketing. The measures remain a draft open for consultation, not a final nationwide ban. The proposed amendments to the Food Safety and Standards (Prohibition and Restrictions on Sales) regulations are intended to prevent consumers from being misled about the nature and composition of products that imitate paneer but use ingredients not derived from milk in place of some or all milk components, according to the draft’s stated rationale. The draft would apply to products already licensed or registered in the Analogue in Dairy Context category as well as those seeking to be sold as paneer. It says those products would have to discontinue using the term in their nomenclature, labelling or marketing. One report also said food businesses serving paneer or cheese analogues would be required to disclose their use prominently on menus and packaging. FSSAI has invited stakeholder consultation.