FSSAI Labelling Requirements for Food Manufacturers: A Complete Compliance Guide

// Feature: FSSAI Labelling Compliance Guide | Vertical: SalesVridhi | Built: January 2026

Your product may taste better than anything on that shelf. But if your label is not FSSAI-compliant, a retailer can — and will — refuse to stock it. Modern trade chains like DMart, Reliance Smart, and Spencer's have compliance checklists their buyers run through. Distributors who supply to these chains run through the same checklists before they commit to a product. One missing declaration, one font too small, and you are out.

This guide covers every mandatory element FSSAI requires on a food product label, the font size rules, how to get your FSSAI licence, and the most common mistakes that get products rejected at the gate.

Why FSSAI Labelling Is Non-Negotiable

The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India regulates labelling under the Food Safety and Standards (Labelling and Display) Regulations, 2011, with significant amendments in 2020 and 2022. These regulations apply to every packaged food product sold in India — no matter how small your business or how local your distribution.

Non-compliance carries real consequences: product seizure, penalty of up to ₹2 lakh per violation, and loss of your FSSAI licence. More immediately, it means rejection at the warehouse door.

The Mandatory Declarations — All Eight

1. FSSAI Licence Number

Your 14-digit FSSAI licence or registration number must appear on every pack. This is not optional and cannot be small. It must be printed in a clearly legible manner, typically preceded by the FSSAI logo.

If you manufacture in one state and sell in another, the licence number of the manufacturing facility is what goes on the label — not your registered office.

2. Name and Address of Manufacturer

The full name and complete address (including PIN code) of the manufacturer must be on the label. If you use a contract manufacturer, the contract manufacturer's name and address go on the label, along with a line identifying the brand owner — for example: "Manufactured by [Contract Manufacturer Name] for [Your Brand Name and Address]."

3. Net Weight or Net Volume

State the net quantity in the standard unit for that product category — grams or kilograms for solids, millilitres or litres for liquids. Both metric and other units can appear, but metric must be primary.

For products sold by count (biscuits, chocolates), the number of pieces plus the net weight must appear.

4. Batch Number or Lot Number

Every pack needs a batch or lot number so that a product recall can be executed precisely. The format is at your discretion — most manufacturers use B followed by a date code (e.g., B261015 for batch produced on 15 October 2026). This is a legal traceability requirement.

5. Manufacturing Date

"Mfg. Dt." followed by the month and year (e.g., Jan 2026) is the minimum. Many manufacturers also add day — this is best practice, especially for perishables.

6. Best Before / Use By Date

"Best before" is used for products that degrade slowly in quality. "Use by" is used for perishables where consuming after the date poses a safety risk. Spices, edible oils, packaged flour, and most dry goods use "best before." Fresh dairy and meat products use "use by."

For products with a shelf life of three months or less, the day, month, and year must all appear. For longer shelf life, month and year is sufficient.

7. Nutritional Information

As of January 2022, nutritional information per 100g or 100ml (and per serving, if you choose to declare serving size) is mandatory for all packaged foods. You must declare: energy (kcal), protein (g), carbohydrates (g) with sugars broken out, total fat (g) with saturated fat broken out, and sodium (mg).

The nutritional values must be obtained from lab testing. Do not estimate. NABL-accredited labs across India offer food testing packages — costs typically run ₹3,000–₹8,000 depending on the panel.

8. Ingredients List and Allergen Declaration

List all ingredients in descending order of weight. This means the ingredient that makes up the highest proportion of the product is listed first.

Allergen declaration is now mandatory for the eight major allergens: cereals containing gluten, crustaceans, eggs, fish, peanuts, soybeans, milk, and tree nuts. If your product contains or may contain any of these through cross-contamination, state it explicitly — "Contains: Peanuts" or "May contain traces of Tree Nuts."

Font Size Requirements

The 2020 amendments introduced specific minimum font size requirements:

• Net quantity: Minimum 1mm height for packs under 200cm² of label area; 2mm for 200–400cm²; 3mm for packs over 400cm²
• FSSAI licence number: Must be clearly legible — typically 2mm minimum
• "Best before" date: Must be easily readable — often stated as "easy to find and read"

The practical rule: if you cannot comfortably read the text at arm's length, it is too small. Retailers will flag it.

How to Get Your FSSAI Licence

There are two routes, based on turnover:

FSSAI Registration (Basic): For food businesses with annual turnover below ₹12 lakh. Online registration at foscos.fssai.gov.in. Fee: ₹100/year. Certificate issued within 7 days typically.

FSSAI State Licence: For businesses with turnover between ₹12 lakh and ₹20 crore, or those operating in one state. Apply through the state food safety department via foscos.fssai.gov.in. Fee: ₹2,000–₹5,000/year. Processing time: 30–60 days.

FSSAI Central Licence: For businesses with turnover above ₹20 crore, or those manufacturing in multiple states, or those exporting. Apply through FSSAI central at foscos.fssai.gov.in. Fee: ₹7,500/year. Processing time: 30–60 days.

For manufacturers at the ₹5L–₹5Cr/month revenue range, State Licence is the typical requirement.

Documents required for State and Central Licence: PAN card, partnership deed or incorporation certificate, list of food products, manufacturing premises address proof, water testing report, food safety management system plan (basic HACCP documentation).

Common Labelling Mistakes That Get Products Rejected

Mistake 1: No FSSAI logo alongside the licence number. The licence number alone is not enough — the FSSAI logo (the green leaf mark or FSSAI text logo) must accompany it.

Mistake 2: "Best before" date stamped illegibly. Inkjet coding that fades, or printing that overlaps with other label elements, is a direct rejection trigger. The date must be readable after the product has been in storage.

Mistake 3: Incorrect product name. FSSAI defines standardised names for many products. "Refined Sunflower Oil" has a specific FSSAI definition. If your product differs from the standard, you must use the common name with appropriate qualifiers — not a marketing-only name.

Mistake 4: Missing trans fat declaration. Under the 2022 rules, products must declare trans fat content separately. Many manufacturers still miss this.

Mistake 5: Ingredients listed alphabetically instead of by weight. Ingredients must be in descending order of weight — not alphabetical, not in order of importance to the recipe.

Mistake 6: Using a contract manufacturer's FSSAI number but not disclosing the brand owner. Both parties must be identified when using contract manufacturing. Missing the brand owner's address is a rejection trigger for modern trade buyers.

Mistake 7: No allergen declaration. Even if your product contains no allergens, if it is manufactured in a facility that also handles allergens, you need a "may contain" statement. General trade distributors may overlook this; modern trade buyers will not.

Online vs Offline Registration

The FSSAI portal (foscos.fssai.gov.in) handles all registrations and licence applications online. Offline applications at state food safety offices are still technically possible but are slower and more document-intensive. The online route is faster and creates a clear digital paper trail.

After submitting online, an inspection may be scheduled for State and Central licences. Basic registrations are typically certificate-on-submission (with subsequent verification).

A Practical Compliance Sequence

If you are launching a new SKU:

1. Get your FSSAI licence first (or verify your existing licence covers the new product category)
2. Get the product tested at an NABL-accredited lab for nutritional information
3. Brief your packaging designer with all mandatory elements and minimum font sizes
4. Review the final artwork against this checklist before sending to print
5. Verify the batch coding system with your production team before your first run

Yeh ek baar sahi kar lo, phir baar baar nahi karna padega. (Get it right once, and you won't have to redo it repeatedly.)

Label compliance is not overhead. It is table stakes for distribution at any meaningful scale across India.

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SalesVridhi helps MSME manufacturers build the distribution infrastructure to get compliant, shelf-ready products into markets across India — from packaging guidance to distributor network development. Start the conversation at salesvridhi.com.