Clearly mark food items as vegetarian, non-vegetarian: Delhi high court

Clearly mark food items as vegetarian, non-vegetarian: Delhi high court

TNN | Mar 3, 2022, 04.40 AM IST

NEW DELHI: Delhi high court has called for a complete disclosure if a food item is vegetarian or non-vegetarian, noting that fundamental rights of every person are impacted by what is offered.

The high court directed Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) on Wednesday to issue a fresh communication to all authorities concerned on the obligation to make a clear disclosure on the ingredients of a food article.

A bench of Justices Vipin Sanghi and D K Sharma passed the order while hearing a plea for labelling “all items” used by the public as vegetarian or non-vegetarian and the “items used in the manufacturing process”.

The court agreed with the submission made by the petitioner’s counsel that it was pointless to issue such a communication to the authorities, and not to the general public whose fundamental rights were being affected.

“Since the right of every person under Article 21 (protection of life and personal liberty) and Article 25 (freedom to conscience and free profession, practice and propagation of religion) under the Constitution is impacted by what is offered on a platter, in our view it is fundamental that a full and complete disclosure regarding the food article being vegetarian or non-vegetarian is made a part of consumer awareness,” the court said, adding that failure in complete disclosure about any packaged food article also defeated the purpose for which Food Safety and Standards Act was enacted.

The bench was hearing a plea by a trust, Ram Gau Raksha Dal, working for the welfare of cows. According to the plea, a December 22, 2021 communication by FSSAI still leaves a lot of ambiguity and does not clearly require food business operators to make a disclosure as to whether or not the food item is vegetarian or non-vegetarian on the basis that even if its use is miniscule, it will make the article non-vegetarian.

The court earlier said the use of non-vegetarian ingredients and labelling them vegetarian would offend religious and cultural sentiments of strict vegetarians and interfere in their right to freely profess their religion.