Srinagar: The Food and Drugs Administration department has directed all the hotels, resturants, cafes and other food business operators to display food safety boards. The Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, the Food Safety and Standards Rules, 2011 and the Food Safety and Standards (Licensing and Registration of Food Businesses) Regulations, 2011 cast a statutory responsibility upon every Food Business Operator to ensure that food offered for sale is safe, properly represented and not misleading to consumers.
Further, the FDA advisory said that Food Safety and Standards (Licensing and Registration of Food Businesses) Regulations, 2018 that in cases of restaurants a food safety display board is to be displayed at prominent place all times and conditions of license require that, “Proprietors of hotels, restaurants and other food establishments selling or exposing for sale savouries, sweets or other articles of food shall display a notice board containing separate lists of the food articles prepared in Ghee, Edible Oil, Vanaspati and other edible fats, for the information of intending purchasers.”
“Every Food Business Operator selling cooked or prepared food shall display a notice board indicating the nature of the food articles exposed for sale.
Accordingly, all Hotels, Restaurants, Cafes, Dhabas, Sweet Shops, Bakeries, Caterers and other Food Business Operators are hereby advised to ensure strict compliance with the above statutory requirements along the details of the FSSAI License number, customer care number by displaying a Food Safety Information Board at a prominent and conspicuous place within their establishments,” the advisory said.
It said that further, in order to ensure transparency, prevent misleading representation of food and enable consumers to make informed choices, every Food Business Operator serving meat or meat products should clearly disclose the specific type of meat used in each food preparation, such as Mutton, Beef, Chicken, Fish or any other meat. Such disclosure should be made on the menu card, Food Safety Information Board and display counter/menu display, wherever applicable. Generic descriptions such as “Meat Curry”, “Meat Biryani”, “Meat Kebab” or “Non-Vegetarian” without indicating the type of meat should be avoided. The information displayed shall be accurate, legible, and easily visible to consumers and kept updated at all times.
The advisory added that all Designated Officers and Food Safety Officers shall disseminate this Advisory among Food Business Operators under their respective jurisdictions and verify compliance during inspections conducted under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006.
“Non-compliance with the applicable provisions of the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, the Rules and the Regulations made thereunder shall attract appropriate action in accordance with law,'” the advisory said.
