India has a host of compliances in place to preserve the quality of the food items being sold for human consumption. At present, the government-based institution FSSAI holds the right of regulating food safety and standard in India. Also, it is the only authority that bestows the food license to the eligible FBOs in India. Every fruit vendor and distributor in India must have an FSSAI food license as a part of legal compliance. If you are not aware of the process of obtaining the FSSAI license for a fruit business then this write-up will get you covered.
Bur before we unfold the registration process, it is important for you to get accustomed to underlying compliances that FSSAI rolled in the recent past.
A close look at FSSAI’s Initiative for clean and fresh fruit and vegetable
FSSAI came up with this initiative to intact the quality and hygiene of fruits and vegetables available for human consumption. Thus, it aspires to regulate the unorganized retail sector comprising of pushcart fruit sellers and pavement vendors. The institution also envisages its seamless integration with mainstream retailers such as Big Bazaar and more. Have a glance over the fundamental guidelines of this initiative.
- All fruit and vegetable traders must avail of an FSSAI food license from the respective portal.
- The trader must manifest their registration number with the green color code on their shop, cart, or kiosk
- The usage of carbide or acetylene gas on fruits is a punishable offense.
- Stickers that lacks relevant details are ban from any sort of usages
- Fruits and vegetables available at the vendor shall not contain harmful chemicals, coloring material, and mineral oil.
- Only permissible wax products such as beeswax, carnauba wax, or shellac wax are only allowed to apply on fruits. The information about the same must be available on every package.
- Cart or kiosk of fruit vendors must stay from the highly polluted area.
- A third-party lab must examine the quality of water every six months to ensure safety.
- Every fruit vendor is liable to maintain records of details of suppliers
Under this project, local authorities are obligated to render a legitimate list of markets and vendors to the FSSAI. Upon receiving this list, the State FDA officials will conduct an audit of premises to comprehend its requisites. The officials then deployed the required changes and guide the vendors accordingly. After performing the said activities, the FSSAI panel will re-audit the premises to check whether the said changes came to effect or not.
After seamless re-auditing, the authority could bestow the Clean and Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Market Certification to the respective applicant. It would remain valid for one year. Please note that authority may conduct a surprise audit of the premises at any time to check whether vendors or suppliers are complying with underlying norms or not. It’s needless to mention that the violation of the above guidelines could compel the defaulters to face harsh penalties.
Read our article:Top Benefits of having a food license in India
What is FSSAI License and how to apply for it?
FSSAI license is bestowed by the Food Safety and Standard Authority of India. This apex government avenue comes under the ambit of the FSS Act, 2006. Ever since this Act has been enacted, every food business operator is bound to follow its guidelines and compliances. FSS Act, 2006[1] also mandates the obtainment of an FSSAI food license to carry food-related business, irrespective of the scope of operation and type of food items.
Online procedure to avail FSSAI license for a fruit business
- Head to the FSSAI online portal
- Login to the portal and open the web-based form from the left menu.
- On the next page, select your state from the drop-down menu.
- On the subsequent window, head to the top menu and click Trade/Retail option.
- On the same page, moved to the bottom of list to select the option, viz Retailer.
- Next, select the apt turnover limit from the given options.
- In the web-form, enter the legit details in the mandatory fields. Once done, upload the requested documents to proceed further.
- Once done, click the payment option located at the bottom of the form.
- As soon as you make the payment, the authority will grant the required registration to the applicant in the downloadable form.
Common Documents to be upload while online Registration
For FSSAI Registration
- ID proof
- Passport-sized photos
For State or Central License
- ID Proof
- Import/Export code
- Proof of address
- Passport-sized photos
- List of all the directors or partners
- MoA and AoA
- Certificate of Incorporation
- NOC from the municipality
Conclusion
FSSAI mandates every entity/member connected with the supply chain of food to avail the food license. Therefore, the FSSAI license for a fruit business is not an optional thing, instead, it is a mandate. Make sure to follow the above procedure deliberately if you want to obtain the license in one go.
Read our article:Renew FSSAI License – When and How to Do it!
