We all love eating Kurkure and Maggi but have we ever looked past the taste to see the ingredients? Disposing off a PIL, the Supreme Court has directed packaged food companies to ๐ฑ๐ถ๐๐ฝ๐น๐ฎ๐ ๐ถ๐บ๐ฝ๐ผ๐ฟ๐๐ฎ๐ป๐ ๐ป๐๐๐ฟ๐ถ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป๐ฎ๐น ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐๐ฎ๐ถ๐น๐ like sugar, salt, and fat levels clearly on food packets.
๐ญ) ๐ช๐ต๐ฎ๐ ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฒ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฑ๐ถ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฐ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป๐ ๐ถ๐๐๐๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐ฏ๐ ๐ฆ๐๐ฝ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐บ๐ฒ ๐๐ผ๐๐ฟ๐?
โก๏ธย A PIL filed by an organization named 3S and Our Health Society, highlighted need for labels that clearly indicate different ingredients level.
โก๏ธ The petition argued empowering consumers to make informed choices.
โก๏ธ This was concerning Front Of Pack Warning Labels.
โก๏ธ Supreme Court has given 3 months to Government to decide on the amendments to the ๐๐ผ๐ผ๐ฑ ๐ฆ๐ฎ๐ณ๐ฒ๐๐ ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐ฆ๐๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฑ๐ (๐๐ฎ๐ฏ๐ฒ๐น๐น๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐๐ถ๐๐ฝ๐น๐ฎ๐) ๐ฅ๐ฒ๐ด๐๐น๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป๐, ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ฎ๐ฌย to make display of information on packs necessary.
โก๏ธ Court cited the example of Kurkure and Maggie packets which have no information.
๐ฎ) ๐ช๐ต๐ฎ๐ ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฒ ๐ป๐ฒ๐ ๐ฝ๐ฟ๐ผ๐ฝ๐ผ๐๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐น๐ฎ๐ฏ๐ฒ๐น๐น๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐ป๐ผ๐ฟ๐บ๐?
โก๏ธ In June 2024, the FSSAI approved draft rules requiring packaged food companies to display key nutritional information.
โก๏ธย Sodium, sugar, salt, saturated fat, and percentage of recommended daily intake to be printed.
โก๏ธ This should be in bold letters and prominent font on the front of packets.
โก๏ธ A star rating system is also proposed under which a higher star rating will indicate a healthier product.
โก๏ธ More than 14,000 public comments on the proposed rules has been received and the Govt will issue new rules after reviewing them.
๐ฏ) ๐ช๐ต๐ ๐๐ต๐ถ๐ ๐ฑ๐ถ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฐ๐๐ถ๐๐ฒ ๐ต๐ฎ๐ ๐๐ผ ๐บ๐๐ฐ๐ต ๐๐ถ๐ด๐ป๐ถ๐ณ๐ถ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฐ๐ฒ?
โก๏ธ Growing consumption of ultra-processed meals in India.
โก๏ธ Noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) including obesity, hypertension on the rise.
โก๏ธ Products such as chips, noodles and packaged snacks frequently lack clear labelling making it difficult to assess impact on health.
โก๏ธ Every average Indian consumer should atleast know what they are consuming.
๐ฐ) ๐ฅ๐ผ๐น๐ฒ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐๐ผ๐ป๐๐๐บ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ ๐ถ๐ป ๐ฒ๐ป๐๐๐ฟ๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐๐ฟ๐ฎ๐ป๐๐ฝ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ป๐ฐ๐ ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐ต๐ฒ๐ฎ๐น๐๐ต๐ถ๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐ฐ๐ต๐ผ๐ถ๐ฐ๐ฒ๐
โก๏ธ Not relying solely on the buzzword healthy and natural, understanding what's really inside.
โก๏ธ Buying from companies that are upfront about their ingredients.
โก๏ธ Use social media or consumer forums to call out misleading packaging.
โก๏ธ Educate more and more people about healthy options.
This directive could prove to be a pivotal step toward addressing the growing health crisis fueled by uninformed consumption and lack of awareness.