India’s food regulator, FSSAI, has created a new category called ‘Ayurveda Aahara’ on its Food Safety Compliance System (FoSCoS) to allow licensing of foods prepared according to classical ayurvedic texts.

About Ayurveda Aahara

• Definition: Refers to food products developed according to holistic dietary principles of Ayurveda, emphasizing balance, seasonal suitability, and use of natural ingredients and therapeutic herbs.
• Significance: Recognized as a trusted nutritional choice that harmonizes traditional knowledge with modern dietary habits.

About the New Category

• Registration: Manufacturers can register under the new ‘Ayurveda Aahara’ category on FSSAI’s Food Safety Compliance System (FoSCoS).
• Licensing & Compliance: This creates a structured licensing regime and compliance pathway for companies producing ayurveda-based food products.
• Approved Texts: Schedule A of the Food Safety and Standards (Ayurveda Aahara) Regulations, 2022 lists the approved classical texts that manufacturers must follow.

Approved Texts

• Charaka Chikitsasthana: It focuses on therapeutics.
• Sushruta Sutrasthana: It covers surgery and medicine.
• Bhavaprakash Nighantu: It details medicinal substances.
• Products may include other botanical ingredients aligned with the concept of Ayurveda Aahara but exclude ayurvedic drugs, proprietary medicines, narcotics, and certain other substances.

Significance and Impact

• Legal Framework: Provides a structured legal framework for manufacturers to obtain central licences.
• Consumer Trust: Enhances consumer trust by ensuring product safety, quality, and authenticity.
• Product Expansion: Facilitates future inclusion of additional products, based on requests supported by authoritative texts.
• Preventive Health: Bridges nutrition and medicine, treating food as a first-line therapy to prevent and manage lifestyle disorders like diabetes, hypertension, and obesity.
• Regulatory Clarity: Strengthens regulatory clarity for Food Business Operators (FBOs) and promotes responsible growth of ayurveda-based food products.

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