India’s FSSAI bans sale of select United Spirits and Inbrew whisky and rum products over labelling violations
India’s food safety regulator has ordered revised labelling requirements after identifying flavouring and age declaration violations in selected alcoholic beverage brands.
INDIA – The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has prohibited the sale of selected whisky and rum products manufactured by United Spirits and Inbrew Beverages in Madhya Pradesh after identifying alleged violations related to flavour additives and product labelling.
According to reports, the affected products include United Spirits’ Antiquity Blue Whisky and Royal Challenge Whisky, as well as Inbrew Beverages’ Bagpiper Deluxe Whisky and Old Cask Deluxe XXX Rum. United Spirits is the Indian subsidiary of global spirits company Diageo.
The action follows laboratory tests that reportedly identified artificial or nature-identical flavouring substances in samples collected from the products.
The Health Ministry said the findings showed that external flavouring substances had been used to replicate the characteristic aroma and taste typically associated with whisky and rum.
According to the regulator, the addition of whisky flavouring to whisky products or rum flavouring to rum products could alter the beverages’ natural characteristics and potentially mislead consumers regarding their composition and quality.
Under India’s food safety regulations, alcoholic beverages containing such ingredients cannot be marketed simply as whisky or rum. Instead, they must carry labels that accurately describe their composition, such as “whisky-flavoured spirit” or “rum-flavoured spirit.”
The authority said these declarations must be displayed prominently on the front of product packaging to ensure consumers receive clear information about the products they purchase.
FSSAI clarified that flavouring substances remain permissible in alcoholic beverages when they serve a legitimate technological purpose. However, concerns arise when additives are used to imitate the defining sensory characteristics of standardised products.
The regulator stated that “consumers must be clearly informed about the products’ actual nature” and added that existing stock could remain on sale once revised labelling requirements had been implemented.
The enforcement action also extended to concerns regarding age declarations used on certain products.
According to the Health Ministry, one rum product labelled as a “7 years old blended” spirit was found to consist predominantly of neutral, unmatured alcohol, while aged rum accounted for less than 5% of the final blend.
Current regulations under the Food Safety and Standards (Alcoholic Beverages) Regulations, 2018, require the age statement on blended spirits to correspond to the youngest spirit included in the blend.
The ministry emphasised that the measures were directed at specific companies and products found to be in breach of existing standards rather than the alcoholic beverage industry as a whole.
Sign up HERE to receive our email newsletters with the latest news and insights from Africa and around the world, and follow us on our WhatsApp channel for updates.
