FSSAI Proposes Ban On Non-Milk Products Being Sold As Paneer

FSSAI’s latest draft would stop products made with non-milk constituents from being manufactured or sold as “paneer”, and would require already registered dairy-analogue products to remove the word from their names, labels and marketing.

What has FSSAI proposed?

The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India has proposed restrictions on the manufacture and sale of paneer made from constituents not derived from milk.

The draft amendment, published on September 24, proposes adding “paneer made of constituents not derived from milk” to the list of substances whose sale is prohibited.

The proposed clause would be inserted in the Food Safety and Standards (Prohibition and Restrictions on Sales) Regulations, 2011.

FSSAI says the move is intended to restrict the manufacture and sale of an analogue product to paneer and to prevent consumers from being misled about its nature and composition.

The draft also says products already licensed or registered under the “Analogue in Dairy Context” category would have to discontinue the use of the term “Paneer” in their nomenclature, labelling or marketing.

This means that a product registered as a dairy analogue could not continue to call itself paneer if the draft becomes effective in that form.

The proposal is still a draft, and FSSAI has invited objections and suggestions.

FSSAI has said these objections and suggestions will be considered after the stipulated 60-day period.

For that reason, the proposal should not be described as an already effective nationwide ban.

What is paneer under FSSAI standards?

Paneer, as defined under FSSAI’s standards, is a milk product made from milk, with or without added milk solids.

It is precipitated using permitted acidulants and heat.

The standard specifies milk and milk solids as the raw materials for paneer.

Depending on the category, paneer must meet prescribed limits for moisture and milk fat.

These requirements matter because they make conventional paneer a defined dairy product rather than a general term for any paneer-like block used in cooking.

What is analogue paneer?

Analogue paneer is different from paneer made under the milk-based standard.

It is a product designed to resemble paneer in appearance, texture and functionality.

In such a product, some or all of the milk constituents are replaced by ingredients that are not derived from milk.

FSSAI defines a “dairy analogue” as a product in which non-milk constituents replace, wholly or partly, one or more milk constituents, while the final product resembles milk or a milk product.

The regulator has specifically said that replacing major milk constituents such as milk fat or milk protein with vegetable oil, vegetable fat, or vegetable protein can result in an analogue.

In practical terms, formulations can contain combinations of vegetable fats or oils, starches, plant proteins, milk solids, emulsifiers and stabilisers.

The exact formulation varies between products.

An analogue is not necessarily an illegally adulterated product merely because it is an analogue.

FSSAI has recognised “Analogue in Dairy Context” as a category.

The regulatory concern arises when such a product is represented to consumers as conventional paneer or another dairy product.

Why is FSSAI acting on this now?

The immediate reason is consumer information.

For several years, FSSAI has had provisions governing dairy analogues.

Its guidance says non-dairy products must not be misrepresented as milk or milk-based products.

FSSAI has also required products for which no specific identity standard exists to carry the word “Analogue” along with the relevant food-category information.

But the regulator has increasingly found a problem at the food-service level.

A consumer ordering a dish described as paneer may not know that the restaurant is using a non-dairy analogue.

This is why the issue is not limited to what is printed on a packet at the retail level.

It also concerns the way a product is named and represented by restaurants and other food-service establishments.

In April this year, FSSAI’s West Region issued a public notice specifically stating that selling a cheese analogue as “paneer” was a violation.

That notice directed manufacturers and food-service establishments to ensure accurate product naming.

The issue has also moved beyond individual inspections.

Several States have introduced restrictions or bans on analogue paneer.

Maharashtra, Punjab and other States have taken action against its manufacture, sale or representation as paneer.

Maharashtra reported that it had tested 308 paneer and dairy-analogue samples between April 2025 and March 2026.

Of those samples, 109 did not conform to prescribed standards, including 30 that were declared unsafe.

How is the latest draft different from disclosure rules?

The latest draft is significant because it goes beyond simply asking manufacturers and restaurants to disclose that a product is an analogue.

It proposes to put “paneer made of constituents not derived from milk” into the list of substances whose sale is prohibited.

It also targets the use of the word “paneer” by products already licensed or registered under the “Analogue in Dairy Context” category.

Such products would have to drop the word “paneer” from their nomenclature, labelling and marketing.

The focus, therefore, is not only on whether the product declares itself an analogue somewhere on the label.

The draft seeks to prevent products in the analogue category from using the word “paneer” at all in their nomenclature, labelling, or marketing.

Is analogue paneer unsafe?

Calling a product “analogue” does not automatically establish that it is unsafe.

The central regulatory issue is that it is not conventional paneer made from milk and therefore should not be represented as such.

Its nutritional composition can also differ substantially from dairy paneer, depending on the formulation.

Replacing milk fat and milk protein with vegetable fats and plant proteins means that consumers cannot automatically assume that an analogue has the same nutritional profile as milk-based paneer.

This matters particularly in India, where paneer is often consumed as a source of protein.

During FSSAI’s deliberations on dairy analogues, some States and stakeholders argued that analogue paneer could deprive consumers of the nutritional benefits expected from dairy paneer.

Those submissions specifically referred to vegetarians who use paneer as a protein source.

These were submissions during deliberations, rather than an FSSAI finding that all analogues are nutritionally harmful.

The distinction is important because the regulatory problem is not that every analogue has been declared unsafe by definition.

The problem identified in the source material is misrepresentation, consumer information and the difference between milk-based paneer and products designed to resemble it.

Can consumers identify analogue paneer?

Analogue products are specifically designed to resemble their dairy counterparts.

Differences in taste, texture or cooking behaviour may sometimes be noticeable.

However, these differences are not substitutes for proper labelling or laboratory testing.

Identification becomes particularly difficult when eating outside the home.

Consumers generally do not see the original packaging or ingredient declaration used by the restaurant.

That is why FSSAI’s approach has increasingly focused on the supply chain.

This supply-chain focus includes manufacturers, distributors, restaurants and other food-service establishments.

FSSAI’s 2025 surveillance drive directed States and Union Territories to undertake testing and label examination of dairy analogues.

That drive was aimed at preventing adulteration and mislabelling.

The restaurant setting is central to the concern because a menu description such as paneer may not tell the consumer whether the kitchen is using conventional dairy paneer or a non-dairy analogue.

Is “fake paneer” being banned?

The phrase “fake paneer” is technically not correct.

Experts note that there is a distinction between a non-dairy analogue that is properly identified as such and a non-dairy product sold or represented as conventional paneer.

FSSAI’s latest proposal seeks to address the latter.

It proposes to prevent products in the analogue category from using the word “paneer” at all in their nomenclature, labelling or marketing.

In other words, the draft is aimed at products made with non-milk constituents being presented as paneer, rather than at the mere existence of every dairy analogue as a category.

The practical effect, if finalised, would be that a product resembling paneer but made with non-milk constituents could not be manufactured, sold, named, labelled or marketed as paneer under the terms described in the draft.

For consumers, the issue matters because paneer has a defined milk-based standard, while analogue products can have different ingredients and nutritional profiles.

For food businesses, the draft matters because it would require accuracy not only in formal labelling but also in product naming and marketing.

The next step is the consideration of objections and suggestions after the stipulated 60-day period.

Until that process is completed, the proposal remains a draft and not an already effective nationwide ban.

Source: The Hindu