Delhi High Court stays FSSAI ban on Dabur selling food products with '100 pc' claims

NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court on Friday stayed an FSSAI directive prohibiting Dabur India from selling food products such as honey, cow ghee, and edible oils with "100 per cent" claims.

Justice Amit Mahajan observed that Dabur was selling the products for decades and has made out a prima facie case for relief at this stage as the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) order was passed without giving it any hearing.

"The court is prima facie of the opinion that the prohibitory order ought not to have been passed without giving an opportunity of hearing. Till the next date of hearing, the impugned order is stayed," said the judge, as he listed the case for hearing on August 24.

Dabur's senior counsel argued that the FSSAI order was passed in violation of principles of natural justice, in absence of any show cause notice or hearing.

The central government standing counsel Ashish Dixit defended the order, stating that Dabur was earlier given "improvement notices" and advisories, and that its "100 per cent" claim on food products was misleading.

Declining a request to not grant interim relief at this stage, the court remarked, "They have been selling it for decades. Now suddenly you can't."

Dabur's senior counsel Sandeep Sethi submitted that the FSSAI which passed the order has no power to prohibit the sale of food products and that this was not a case of any "emergency" either.

The court issued notice to FSSAI on Dabur's petition challenging the prohibition and asked it to file its reply before the next date of hearing.

In a social media post on Monday, the FSSAI said it has issued the prohibition order to Dabur India Ltd over the sales of food products carrying misleading "100 per cent" claims, including honey, apple cider vinegar, virgin coconut oil, sesame oil, cow ghee, coconut water, coconut milk and other such items.

According to the food safety regulator, the use of the 100 per cent claims is in contravention of the FSS (Advertising & Claims) Regulations, 2018, as they are ambiguous, unverifiable and likely to mislead consumers.

In the petition, Dabur India stated that the FSSAI order was passed in violation of principles of natural justice as well as the statutory provisions as it was issued in the absence of a prior show cause notice and an opportunity of hearing.

The plea has asserted that the FSSAI has no power to pass such prohibitory orders and that the order in the instant case was also non-speaking, ambiguous and without application of mind.

It has further said that the expression "100%" is used across several categories of food products by many other major players and FSSAI ought not to have publicly published the order as it has painted a "negative image" of the Dabur brand.

Giving details about the violations by Dabur, the FSSAI has earlier said that "food products being sold on the company's website were found carrying misleading '100 per cent' claims such as '100 per cent Natural', '100 per cent Pure', '100 per cent Purity Guaranteed', '100 per cent Organic' and '100 per cent Tender Coconut Water'."

"FSSAI directed Dabur India Limited to immediately prohibit the sale of the food products identified in the notice and all other food products carrying misleading '100 per cent' claims, and to submit an Action Taken Report (ATR) within 15 days," the regulator had said.