The government has clarified that the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) initiated enforcement action against certain alcoholic beverage manufacturers over the alleged use of flavouring substances that mimic standardised alcoholic beverages and misleading age-related claims on product labels.
In a statement, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) said the action was taken against some alcohol manufacturers for violating existing food safety regulations, including the use of flavours that imitate the inherent aroma and taste of standardised alcoholic beverages such as rum and whisky.
The ministry said investigations found that some manufacturers were producing alcoholic beverages mainly from spirit or extra-neutral alcohol and later adding flavours to recreate the sensory characteristics of products such as rum and whisky.
According to the ministry, such products are considered sub-standard and were allegedly misrepresented by using the names of standard alcohol categories. It added that consumers were not adequately informed about the true nature of these products on the front of the packaging.
The ministry also said laboratory testing of sampled rum and whisky products from multiple manufacturers detected the presence of external artificial or nature-identical flavours.
Based on laboratory findings, it stated that the addition of these flavours masked the natural flavour profile of the products, making them sub-standard under existing regulations.
The government further referred to the "7 years old blended" claim on an Old Monk XXX Rum variant, calling it misleading.
Under the Food Safety and Standards (Alcoholic Beverages) Regulations, 2018, the age claim of a blended spirit is determined by the youngest spirit used in the blend, the ministry said.
Based on laboratory reports, FSSAI issued prohibition-of-sale orders against products manufactured at Mohan Rocky Springwater's Khopoli unit, United Spirits' Baramati facility, INBREW Beverages in Madhya Pradesh, Associated Alcohol & Breweries in Madhya Pradesh, and another United Spirits unit in Madhya Pradesh.
The affected brands include Old Monk rum variants, McDowell's No.1 Rum, Bagpiper Deluxe Whisky, Old Cask Deluxe XXX Rum, Antiquity Blue Whisky and Royal Challenge Whisky.
The ministry also said inspections and sample collection were carried out at Mandexi Distilleries & Breweries in Goa, while notices were issued to six other manufacturers in Maharashtra.
Clarifying its regulatory position, the ministry said flavouring substances such as coffee and vanilla are permitted where legally allowed and supported by a valid technological justification.
However, it emphasised that the current issue concerns the addition of flavours representing the alcoholic beverage itself, such as rum flavour in rum or whisky flavour in whisky.
The ministry added that the action does not reflect the practices of the entire alcohol industry and noted that many manufacturers continue to produce alcoholic beverages in compliance with prescribed food safety standards.
With Inputs From IANS