The Delhi High Court has determined that the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) does not have the authority to oversee animal or cattle feed. This decision was based on the finding that such regulatory powers are not covered by the Food Safety and Standards Act of 2006.
A plea filed by Godrej Agrovet Ltd was accepted by a division bench of Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya and Justice Tejas Karia. The court invalidated Note (c) attached to Regulation 2.5.2 of the Food Safety and Standards (Food Products Standards and Food Additives) Regulations.
According to the Delhi High Court, the provision that banned the feeding of meat and bone meal to milk and meat-producing animals and required adherence to BIS standards for commercial feed was deemed to be outside the scope of the parent statute. The court stated that any FSSAI regulation on cattle feed or animal feed would exceed the Act’s boundaries, which focus solely on food for human consumption.
Expressions like “food safety,” “primary food,” and “unsafe food” under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 were deemed insufficient to encompass cattle feed or animal feed. The court emphasized that the Act’s functions are strictly related to food for human consumption and do not extend to feed for animals or cattle.
Applying established principles of delegated legislation, the bench concluded that the FSSAI had overstepped its regulatory authority. It was ruled that the FSSAI’s directives from 2019 to 2021 mandating BIS certification for commercial cattle feed were invalid unless specifically notified by the Central government.
