7 Food Labeling Mistakes That Can Get Your Business Fined by FSSAI

Food labeling violations are among the top reasons FSSAI sends notices to food businesses. Many food entrepreneurs invest heavily in product quality but overlook labeling compliance — only to receive notices, fines, or product bans. Here are the 7 most common food labeling mistakes.

Mistake 1: Missing or Incorrect FSSAI Number

Every packaged food product must display a valid 14-digit FSSAI license/registration number. Common errors:

• Printing a wrong or expired FSSAI number
• Not printing FSSAI number at all
• Using someone else's FSSAI number

Fix: Print your exact FSSAI number (check your certificate). After April 2026, with perpetual licenses, verify your number is current.

Mistake 2: Wrong or Missing Veg/Non-Veg Symbol

The green circle (vegetarian) and brown/red triangle (non-vegetarian) symbols are mandatory on all food products. Errors include:

• No symbol on products that contain animal ingredients
• Using green symbol on products with eggs or gelatin
• Wrong size or incorrect symbol design

Mistake 3: Missing Allergen Declaration

If your product contains any of the 8 major allergens (milk, eggs, nuts, wheat/gluten, soy, fish, shellfish, peanuts), they must be declared in bold on the label. This is a food safety critical requirement — fines up to ₹3 lakh.

Mistake 4: Incorrect Date Format

FSSAI requires specific date formats:

• Products with shelf life under 3 months: "Use by DD/MM/YYYY"
• Products with shelf life over 3 months: "Best Before [Month, Year]"
• Do NOT use only a batch code as a substitute for date

Mistake 5: Incomplete Nutritional Information

Nutritional information per 100g/ml is mandatory. Missing or incorrect values for energy, protein, fat, carbohydrates, sugars, sodium, trans fat, and saturated fat are common violations.

Mistake 6: Misleading Health Claims

FSSAI strictly regulates health claims on food labels. You cannot claim a product "cures" or "prevents" diseases. Terms like "sugar-free" (if product has any sugar), "fat-free" (if fat is above permissible limit), and "natural" (for processed foods) can attract penalties.

Mistake 7: Wrong Font Size

Mandatory declarations must be in a minimum font size of 1.5 mm. Net quantity must be in minimum 2 mm font for packages above 200g/ml. Tiny, unreadable labels violate FSSAI regulations even if all information is technically present.

Conclusion

Before launching any packaged food product, invest in a professional label compliance review. Velco Legal India offers food label review services to ensure your labels are 100% FSSAI compliant before you go to print.