FSSAI set to focus on healthier foods now
Since people now trying out different diets such as millets and other gluten-free foods, the food regulator wants its Scientific Committee to guide them
image for illustrative purpose
New Delhi: The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) is increasing its focus on “new challenges and areas” such as nutraceuticals, ultra-processed foods, and rapid kits and methods for detecting food-borne pathogens.
FSSAI CEO G Kamala Vardhana Rao urged the authority’s Scientific Committee to focus on the new challenges and areas, official sources told Bizz Buzz. The Scientific Committee comprises six independent experts and the chairpersons of the FSSAI’s 21 Scientific Panels. The Scientific Committee is the apex scientific body of the FSSAI to provide scientific opinion and inputs. Since people are now trying out different diets and recipes (e.g., millets and other gluten-free foods), the FSSAI wants the Scientific Committee to guide them.
The word ‘nutraceutical’ has been coined by blending ‘nutrition’ with ‘pharmaceutical.’ It is a food or part of it that provides the body with medical or health benefits, including the prevention and treatment of a disease. It is seen as a more natural way to accomplish therapeutic results with minimal side effects, and this view has propelled the discovery and production of nutraceuticals to become a multibillion dollar enterprise, according to a 2017 academic paper.
With people becoming more aware about nutrition and preventive healthcare, they are opting for not just healthier foods but also consuming nutraceuticals. According to an estimate, the nutraceuticals market will grow at a CAGR of 15 per cent till 2028. Unsurprisingly, not only entrepreneurs and businesses are entering the sector, but many multinational companies are coming to India.
People are also trying healthier foods like millets, which have been an integral part of our diet for centuries. Apart from health benefits, millets are also environment-friendly as they don’t need much water and inputs. This is the reason that the United Nations, at the behest of India, declared 2023 the International Year of Millets. The government is also promoting the consumption of millets. In this milieu, the FSSAI wants its Scientific Committee to focus on formulating standards for nutraceuticals and healthier foods.
