Bournvita among drinks to be removed from e-commerce platforms' "health drinks" section, says Govt

The Ministry of Commerce and Industry on April 10, asked e-commerce websites to remove Bournvita among other drinks and beverages from the ‘healthy drinks’ category on their platforms.

The National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) said that there is no "health drink defined under the FSS Act 2006, rules and regulations as submitted by FSSAl & Mondelez India”, Moneycontrol reported.

The Ministry in a notification said, “NCPCR, a statutory body constituted under section (3) of the commission for Protection of Child Rights (CPCR) Act, 2005 after its inquiry under Section 14 of CPCR Act, 2005, concluded that there is no "Health Drink defined under FSS Act 2006, Rules and regulations as submitted by FSSAl and Mondelez India Food Pvt Ltd.”

It therefore, advised all e-commerce companies and portals to remove drinks and beverages that included Bournvita from the ‘healthy drinks’ category.

Earlier, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) had informed all e-commerce platforms to refrain from labelling dairy-based, cereal-based or malt-based beverages as ‘health drinks’ or ‘energy drinks’.

The reason behind this is because ‘health drink’ isn’t defined in Indian food laws. ‘Energy drink’ on the other hand, by law, refers to flavoured water drinks - carbonated and non carbonated, under the FSS Act 2006.

According to the FSSAI, the use of these terms can mislead consumers. Hence, the body has asked all Food Business Operators (FBO) that operate via e-commerce to dissociate themselves from such terms by removing their drinks and beverages from these categories.

"This corrective action aims to enhance clarity and transparency regarding the nature and functional properties of the products, ensuring that consumers can make well-informed choices without encountering misleading information, “ the body said in a statement.