FAQ’S on Gazette notified Alcoholic Beverages Regulation, 2018

The Food and Safety Standards Regulations, 2018 came out with the regulations for Alcoholic Beverages in India. It will be enforced from 1^st April, 2019. Various FAQ’s are summed up by the government for better clarity and understanding in the system.

Frequently Asked Questions for Alcoholic Beverages Business in India

1. How the products under the Geographical Indication (GI) are will be covered under these rules?

GI products need to be registered under Geographical Indication of Goods (Registration and Protection) Act, 1999. They should fulfil quality standards and the country-specific requirements for such GI products of the country of origin w.r.t. quality parameters. The products need to qualify all safety parameters such as limits for heavy metals and microbiological guidelines of this Regulations.

2. How to specify and label the amount of sugar in wines?

Sugar should be labelled as per the requirements of the clause 5.9.1 which can be in range.

It can be specified as the Sugar content is weight/ volume (w/v).

3. What should be the font size of the Statutory Warning for small size SKUs of 60ml/90ml/180ml?

The font size of the Statutory Warning needs to be 1.5 mm for SKUs up to 200ml pack size and above that, size of 3mm need to be used.

4. What is the meaning of ±0.3 percent tolerance limit of ethyl alcohol?

It means that the maximum permissible variation calculated by adding or subtracting 0.3 in the nominal value (ethyl alcohol) of the declared strength.

5. What is the meaning of the date of vintage on the label of Wines?

The date of vintage can also be mentioned as the year of vintage.

6. Is it mandatory to use the exact percent of alcohol in Beer?

The label can also be specified with the upper limit of alcohol in Beer instead of exact amount of alcohol in Beer.

For example, up to 5% in regular Beer and above 5% to up to 8% in strong beer.

7. Is it mandatory to use Statutory Warning in the Box?

Yes. Statutory Warning in the Box as per Regulations is mandatory.

8. What will be the parameter of yeast in various categories of Beer?

Yeast parameter in various categories of Beer is under review and a final decision is yet to be taken..

9. What is the status of implementation for alcoholic beverages not covered under these regulations?

Continuation of the manufacturing, importing and packing, distribution of any currently traded/available ‘Craft Beer’ or ‘Wine based beverages’ will be permitted. But FBOs need to take permission from FSSAI, for any new innovative alcoholic beverage not covered under these regulations.

10. What will happen to the remaining existing stock from 1^st April, 2019?

Food Business Operators (FBOs) are given time period of 6 months to utilize old unused labels and printed cans. Alcoholic beverages manufactured prior to 1^st April, 2019 can be sold in the market up to 31^st March 2020 or till amendments are finalized; whichever is later.

11. Will there be an extra fee charged for registration of new or change in label?

The imposed fee, charged for registration of new/change in label under the Excise Act, may be waived off on one-time basis by the respective State/UT Government.

12. Whether it is required to use 2% Grape Spirit in Brandy?

Yes, it is mandatory to use a minimum 2% of pure grape brandy in case of Blended Brandy. However, in case of new category of “Indian Brandy” there is no need to add grape spirit.

13. What should be the amount of water in wines, can it be more than 30 ml per kg of grape or fruit?

The amount of water that can be added during the processing of  wines is being revised from the existing limit of 30 ml/kg to 70 ml/kg of grape or fruit. This revision is under review, and for the time being the Food Business Operators (FBOs) are required to follow the limit under revision. Any change will be soon notified by the FSSAI.

References:

1. pdf.Availableat https://fssai.gov.in/home/WhatsNewAll.html.Accessed on 07.05.2019.