Soon, red hexagonal label to warn of high fat, sugar, salt in snacks

The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) plans to introduce a red hexagonal label on packaged snacks to warn consumers about high levels of salt, added sugar, or added fat. This proposal was prompted by the Supreme Court, which is hearing a case brought by a Kerala-based non-profit organization. The label, which will be larger than the nutritional information table on the back of the pack, will be used in phase one for products high in at least two of the specified ingredients.

Phase two will expand the warning to include products high in just one ingredient. Exemptions include single-ingredient foods and natural sources of fat, sugar, or salt. Experts have raised concerns about the label's effectiveness due to the two-ingredient threshold and the use of the term "added." The label will be implemented in two phases, with the first targeting products high in two or more of the specified ingredients.