Key Update

The Maharashtra government has banned the manufacture, processing, preparation, packing, storage, transportation, distribution, and sale of analogue (non-dairy) paneer across the state for one year, citing risks to public health. With this decision, Maharashtra becomes the second state after Chhattisgarh to prohibit the product.

Manufacturers produce analogue paneer using vegetable oils, starches, emulsifiers, additives, and milk solids, unlike traditional paneer, which they make directly from milk.

Government Issues Statewide Prohibition Order

Food Safety Commissioner Tukaram Mundhe issued the prohibition order on July 30, directing food businesses across Maharashtra to stop manufacturing, processing, storing, transporting, distributing, and selling analogue paneer for one year.

The Maharashtra Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) warned that businesses that sell analogue paneer as conventional paneer mislead consumers and engage in an unfair trade practice under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006.

The FDA said offenders could face penalties ranging from up to six months’ imprisonment and a fine of ₹1 lakh to life imprisonment and a minimum fine of ₹10 lakh if unsafe food causes death.

FDA Finds Widespread Non-Compliance

The FDA imposed the ban after a year-long enforcement and surveillance drive revealed persistent food safety violations despite regular inspections, product sampling, and awareness campaigns.

Between April 1, 2025, and March 31, 2026, the FDA collected 308 samples of paneer and analogue paneer from across the state for laboratory analysis. Testing showed that 109 samples (35.4%) failed to meet prescribed standards, including 79 substandard samples and 30 unsafe samples.

Laboratories also detected Butyro-refractometer (BR) readings and iodine values outside the prescribed limits for milk fat in several samples, indicating that manufacturers had added or substituted vegetable fats in place of milk fat.

FDA Finds Restaurants Misrepresenting Analogue Paneer

FDA inspections found that several hotels, restaurants, caterers, and other food businesses served analogue paneer as genuine paneer without informing consumers through menus, invoices, or display boards. Inspectors also found businesses transporting and selling analogue paneer without original packaging, mandatory labels, invoices, batch identification, or traceability documents, making it difficult to trace the product’s source and increasing food safety risks.

MLA Calls for Action on Analogue Cheese

BJP MLA Vikram Pachpute, who had earlier demanded a ban on analogue paneer, welcomed the government’s decision and described it as a significant step towards protecting consumer health. He also urged the government to investigate the use of analogue cheese, alleging that some companies market or sell it as real cheese and calling for strict action wherever consumers are misled.

Source: Hindustan Times