The government has issued a big order to e-commerce companies. The government has asked e-commerce companies to remove all drinks and beverages including Bournvita from the category of health drinks. The Ministry of Commerce and Industry has given this information through a notification.
This statement of the government comes after the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) concluded that no health drinks are defined under the Food Safety-Standards Act 2006 and its rules. This has also been made clear by food safety and standards. In this notification issued on April 10, the Ministry said that all e-commerce sites and platforms are being instructed to remove all beverages including Bournvita from health drinks.
Order was also issued for these beverages
Earlier this month, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) had directed all e-commerce companies not to label dairy, grain or malt based beverages as 'health drinks' or 'energy drinks'. This is because the term 'health drinks' is not defined in the country's food laws and 'energy drinks' are specifically considered under the laws as flavored water-based drinks, both carbonated and non-carbonated.
Why did the government issue such an order?
FSSAI warned e-commerce sites that using wrong words can mislead customers. Therefore, it advised all e-commerce Food Business Operators (FBOs) to make reforms by removing or separating such beverages from the 'Health Drinks/Energy Drinks' category. FSSAI said that there is no such thing as health drinks under FSS rules.
The size of the energy drink and sports drink market is so much
The regulatory body said that the objective of these instructions is to increase clarity and improvement in the nature and quality of products through corrective action. So that no misleading information reaches the customers and people can choose a good option. According to a market study, the current energy drink and sports drink market size is $4.7 billion and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 5.71 percent by 2028.
