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India’s food safety regulator has issued notices to Nestlé India and Hindustan Unilever (HUL) over alleged misleading claims and regulatory non-compliance involving several nutrition products.
The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) said the notices form part of enforcement action aimed at ensuring food products comply with India’s food safety and labelling requirements and that health and nutrition claims made to consumers are appropriately substantiated.
HUL has been issued a notice concerning its Horlicks Mother’s Plus Kesar 400g BIB product.
According to FSSAI, the product carries claims relating to promoting healthy birth weight. The regulator has questioned whether such claims could be considered misleading and whether they comply with applicable food regulations.
The action comes as regulators and consumers continue to scrutinise health and nutrition claims on products targeted at specific consumer groups, particularly those marketed around maternal and child nutrition.
FSSAI has also raised concerns around claims associated with other Horlicks products, including claims relating to health benefits and “no added sugar” labelling.
Nestlé India has also received a notice relating to its Resource Renal vanilla-flavoured powder, a nutritional product intended for people with chronic kidney disease.
FSSAI has reportedly raised concerns over the product’s regulatory status and labelling, including whether the product complies with the relevant approval and classification requirements.
The regulator’s latest action follows other scrutiny of Nestlé India’s products this year, including enforcement action concerning infant nutrition products. The company has previously rejected claims of non-compliance and said its products meet applicable regulations.
The notices come amid a broader push by FSSAI to address health and nutrition claims that it considers potentially misleading to consumers.
The regulator has also recently issued notices to other food businesses over health-related claims, including claims made online for cooking oil concerning cholesterol and natural oryzanol content.
