Report

In the past five fiscal years, consumers have filed more than 21,000 complaints against e-commerce platforms with the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI). Minister of State for Food and Consumer Affairs B.L. Verma shared this information in a written reply to the Rajya Sabha.

According to the minister, FSSAI regularly conducts inspections, monitoring, and random sampling of food items sold through e-commerce platforms, including those offered by manufacturers, sellers, hotels, and restaurants. Between 2020-21 and 2024-25, FSSAI received a total of 21,042 complaints. The numbers surged significantly over the years:

• 805 in 2020-21

• 3,726 in 2021-22

• 4,321 in 2022-23

• 4,708 in 2023-24

• 7,482 in 2024-25

Enforcement and Redressal Actions

In response to rising concerns regarding e-commerce platforms, FSSAI took stricter actions in 2023-24, including revoking 502 licenses, suspending 316 licenses, and imposing fines totaling ₹74.12 lakh. Minister Verma emphasized that FSSAI operates a robust system for managing food-related grievances. “Most complaints involve food safety concerns such as contamination, poor quality, mislabeling, and misleading claims or promotions,” he said. Consumers can report issues through various channels—web portal, mobile app, helpline, Twitter, Facebook—all of which feed into the Food Safety Connect Portal, a part of the online Food Safety Compliance System (FoSCoS).

Source: NDTV