8 states have acted. Now, food regulator may ban analogue paneer across India

The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) is deliberating on a nationwide ban on analogue paneer, a non-dairy product made with vegetable oil, fats, and vegetable proteins instead of milk constituents. A senior official revealed that consultations on the regulation are ongoing, with a draft expected to be released soon.

Currently, eight states, including Karnataka, Gujarat, and Maharashtra, have enacted state-level bans on analogue paneer. The issue gained prominence after social media posts highlighted the presence of "fake paneer" at a restaurant owned by Shah Rukh Khan's wife, Gauri Khan. The food regulator subsequently discussed the labeling of such foods, suggesting that they should explicitly state terms like "non-dairy" and "analogue" and outline the ingredients.

For instance, "analogue of cheese (milk solids, refined palm oil, hydrogenated vegetable fat, modified starch, emulsifier)." FSSAI's existing labelling norms already require restaurants to disclose details about the foods they sell, but the regulator is also debating whether menu cards should explicitly label the paneer or cheese as "non-dairy" or "analogue."

The dairy products standard mandates that paneer must be made from milk and milk solids, excluding vegetable oil, fats, and vegetable proteins. The regulator is also contemplating allowing the sale of vegetable-oil based paneer under a different name. In the past, the food regulator examined the prohibition of selling these items in their loose form and suggested registering all manufacturers of dairy analogues.

Typically, smaller food manufacturers with an annual turnover under Rs 12 lakh or a production capacity of less than 100 kgs/litres per day are exempt from FSSAI registration.