The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has issued a strong warning to ecommerce platforms, urging full compliance with food safety and hygiene regulations or risk severe action. At a meeting chaired by FSSAI CEO G. Kamala Vardhana Rao, over 70 representatives from leading ecommerce platforms were directed to immediately address protocol gaps across the digital food supply chain.
Ecommerce firms were told to prominently display FSSAI License or Registration numbers on all receipts, invoices, and customer-facing documents. They must also share details of warehouses and storage facilities on the FoSCoS portal, and disclose information about their hygiene training programmes, especially for food handlers and delivery personnel.
Mandatory hygiene training and transparent disclosures
As part of the compliance push, ecommerce companies were directed to ensure that all food handlers undergo FoSTaC (Food Safety Training & Certification). Firms are expected to submit timelines and documentation for these training initiatives to FSSAI and adhere to all relevant Standard Operating Procedures under the Food Safety and Standards Act.
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Additional measures under consideration include displaying the “Date of Expiry/Use By” for food items at the point of consumer interface. FSSAI emphasised that any entity found flouting rules would be dealt with stringently, reinforcing that consumer health and safety must remain paramount as online food commerce expands.
Regulatory focus tightens amid ecommerce growth
The directive comes as India’s digital commerce and quick-commerce sectors see explosive growth. With increasing consumer dependence on doorstep delivery of groceries and ready-to-eat items, FSSAI is now tightening its oversight to ensure safe handling and storage standards are uniformly followed.
By mandating full disclosure and operational transparency, the regulator aims to reduce food safety risks, protect consumer trust, and prevent quality lapses in the fast-growing online food marketplace. Ecommerce players have been reminded that food safety is not optional—it is a legal and public health obligation.
