New Delhi: Dabur India Limited has approached the Delhi High Court challenging the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India’s (FSSAI) prohibition order directing it to stop the sale of certain food products carrying allegedly misleading “100 per cent” claims.
The matter was mentioned Thursday for urgent listing before a Bench of Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya and Justice Tejas Karia, which agreed to the request and allowed the case to be listed on an urgent basis.
The petition comes days after the country’s food regulator issued a prohibition order against the FMCG major over the sale of food products bearing claims such as “100 per cent Natural”, “100 per cent Pure”, “100 per cent Purity Guaranteed”, “100 per cent Organic” and “100 per cent Tender Coconut Water”.
According to the FSSAI, these claims were ambiguous, unverifiable and likely to mislead consumers, allegedly violating the Food Safety and Standards (Advertising and Claims) Regulations, 2018.
The regulator had also observed that Dabur Himalayan Organic Apple Cider Vinegar and Dabur Organic Honey displayed the Jaivik Bharat logo without valid FSSAI organic endorsement, allegedly violating the Food Safety and Standards (Organic Foods) Regulations, 2017. Further, it said Dabur Hommade Coconut Milk was marketed with the claim “100 per cent Purity”, which is not permitted for compound food products.
Stating that the company had failed to take satisfactory corrective action despite an earlier notice, the FSSAI directed Dabur to immediately stop the sale of the identified products and submit an Action Taken Report (ATR) within 15 days.
Following the regulator’s action, Dabur had maintained that its product labels comply with the prevailing legal and regulatory framework and are consistent with long-standing industry practices. In regulatory filings before the BSE and NSE, the company said it stood by the purity and quality of its products and had never made any misleading claims.
Dabur further said it continued to maintain the highest standards of quality, food safety and regulatory compliance in the manufacture and sale of its products, adding that the impact of the prohibition order was limited to the objected food products.
The company had also said it was seeking legal advice on the future course of action, following which it has now approached the Delhi High Court.
