BENGALURU: The Karnataka Food Safety and Drugs Administration (FDA) has banned analogue or non-dairy paneer across the state for one year.
The order prohibits the manufacture, processing, packing, storage, distribution, transportation and sale of analogue or non-dairy products that resemble paneer or are used as a substitute for paneer. Here, milk fat or milk solids are wholly or partially replaced with vegetable oil, vegetable fat or other non-dairy ingredients. Such products have also been prohibited from being displayed, supplied or sold under the name “paneer”.
The order states that paneer is a standardised food product under Regulation 2.1.16 of the Food Safety and Standards (Food Products Standards and Food Additives) Regulations, 2011. It is defined as a product obtained from milk, with or without permitted milk solids, through precipitation using permitted acidulants followed by heating. Milk fat is considered an essential constituent of paneer, and the use of vegetable oil, vegetable fat or other non-dairy fat in place of or in addition to milk fat is not permitted.
The department said the absence of specific quality standards for products falling under the category of “Analogue in Dairy Context” has made enforcement difficult. It also expressed concern that such products could be sold or used as genuine paneer, potentially misleading consumers.
The FDA said consumers cannot be expected to distinguish between genuine paneer and analogue products on their own, particularly when the products are marketed as paneer. The order notes that representing an analogue product as paneer could create a false impression about its nature and ingredients and may also amount to misbranding.
It stated that dairy analogue products are required to carry declarations about the use of non-dairy ingredients and substituted milk components as prescribed under the applicable labelling regulations.
The prohibition is not a blanket ban on all products containing non-dairy ingredients. It applies specifically to dairy analogue products for which no separate quality standards have been prescribed by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) and which are not standardised food products.
Separately standardised products such as frozen desserts, processed cheese and mixed fat spread are excluded from the order as they are governed by their own prescribed standards.The order also prohibits food businesses from using, storing, stocking, supplying, selling or otherwise utilising analogue or non-dairy paneer while preparing any food product or dish.
