MINISTRY OF HEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE, Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) vide Notification No. F. No. Stds/SP(water and Beverages)/Notification(1)/FSSAI-2019 dated 18th December 2020 has come up with the Food Safety and Standards (Alcoholic Beverages) First Amendment Regulations, 2020 in the exercise of the powers conferred by Section 92 (2) (v) of the said Act, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India hereby makes the FSS (Alcoholic Beverages) First Amendment Regulations, 2020 further to amend the Food Safety and Standards (Alcoholic Beverages) Regulations, 2018.
Applicability:
They shall come into force on the date of their publication in the Official Gazette and the Food Business Operator shall comply with all the provisions of these regulations by 1st July 2021.
Key Highlights:
1. These regulations specifying the tolerance limit (alcohol by volume-abv) of ethyl alcohol content, defining the low alcohol beverages, wines, wine-based beverages, and Indian Brandy.
2. Food Business Operators (FBOs) are required to comply with all the provisions of these regulations by July 1, 2021.
3. Indian brandy shall be made either from the neutral spirit or rectified spirit or a mixture of both.
4. On the label, the name ‘Indian Brandy’ shall be followed by a statement within brackets as ‘made from molasses spirit/grain spirit/neutral spirit’ with a font size that is easily readable.
5. Tolerance Limit under these regulations
the tolerance limit for ethyl alcohol content for up to 20 percent abv shall be ± 0.3 percent (-0.5 percent for up to 90 ml per bottle) and for more than 20 percent abv it shall be ±1.0 percent (-1.5 percent for up to 90 ml per bottle) of the declared strength. In the case of wine, the tolerance limit shall be ±0.5.
6. Low alcoholic beverage :
“Alcoholic beverages containing more than 0.5 percent abv but not more than 8.0 percent. abv may be called a low alcoholic beverage.
7. Different types of wines
- Dry Wine, which is a wine that contains up to 0.9 percent sugar,
- Sparkling wine including Brut, Extra Dry, Dry, Semi-Dry and Sweet based on sugar content and
- Fortified Wine, which is a wine with high alcohol content achieved by the addition of alcohol (brandy or wine spirits or neutral spirit of agricultural origin) provided a minimum of 7 .0 percent comes from the fermentation of grapes, grape must, and fruits and used as an aperitif or dessert wine.
- Fortified wine may be red or white, dry or sweet.
8. Labelling Requirements: FBOs are required to
- indicate the origin (country or state) of wine and
- declare the range of sugar,
- the generic name of the variety of grape or fruit used in descending order of quantity or raw material used,
- geographic origin,
- and vintage year, if such claims are made,
- the name of residues of preservatives or additives present as such, or in their modified forms, in the final product, and declare the name of the place, or region, sub-region, or appellation, if 75 percent of the grapes come from that place.
9. Warning on Labels:
size of statutory warning shall not be less than 1.5 mm for pack size of up to 200ml and for pack size above 200 ml, size of the warning shall not be less than 3 mm’.
Source:
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