Dabur honey, ghee, coconut oil banned by FSSAI over misleading claims: Why food regulator acted, list of products under lens

Food regulator the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has prohibited Dabur India from selling several food products carrying "100 per cent" claims, saying such labelling violates food safety regulations.

In a social media post on Monday, the FSSAI said it had issued a prohibition order to Dabur India Ltd over the sale of products carrying misleading "100%" claims. These include honey, apple cider vinegar, virgin coconut oil, sesame oil, cow ghee, coconut water, coconut milk and other such products.

According to the regulator, food products sold on the company's website were found carrying claims such as "100% Natural", "100% Pure", "100% Purity Guaranteed", "100% Organic" and "100% Tender Coconut Water".


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Check FSSAI post here:

Why did FSSAI ban sale of these Dabur products?
The FSSAI said these claims violate the Food Safety and Standards (Advertising & Claims) Regulations, 2018, as they are ambiguous, unverifiable and likely to mislead consumers.

It also found that Dabur Himalayan Organic Apple Cider Vinegar and Dabur Organic Honey displayed the Jaivik Bharat logo without a valid FSSAI organic endorsement.

Additionally, Dabur Hommade Coconut Milk was marketed with the claim "100% Purity", which the regulator said is not permitted for compound foods under the Food Safety and Standards (Advertising & Claims) Regulations, 2018.

What does the ban mean?

The regulator has now directed Dabur India to immediately stop the sale of the identified products and all other food products carrying misleading "100%" claims. It has also asked the company to submit an Action Taken Report (ATR) within 15 days.

List of products banned from sale

The prohibition order covers products carrying misleading "100%" claims, including:

• Honey
• Apple cider vinegar
• Virgin coconut oil
• Sesame oil
• Cow ghee
• Coconut water
• Coconut milk
• Other food products carrying similar "100%" claims

In recent months, the FSSAI has been using social media to publicise enforcement actions against food business operators and e-commerce platforms selling such products. Many alcoholic beverage makers and energy drink manufacturers have also come under the regulator's scrutiny.