Compliance, Licensing, Inspection and Enforcement
Licensing tiers
Compliance starts with the right permission. Petty food businesses with annual turnover up to ₹12 lakh register with FSSAI; businesses above that and up to ₹20 crore need a State licence; above ₹20 crore, importers and 100% export-oriented units need a Central licence. Applications run through FoSCoS. A licence is premises-specific and condition-bound: hygienic premises, food-safety management system, trained food safety supervisor, pest control, water quality, waste handling, records and display of the licence. Registration is not a mini-licence for a large unit.
Inspection and enforcement
Inspections are risk-based and use checklists covering premises, process, hygiene, labelling and records. The Food Safety Officer may enter, inspect, sample and seize. The Designated Officer grants licences and issues improvement notices (s.32) with a time-bound correction plan. The Commissioner may issue prohibition orders (s.33) where food poses an imminent risk. Recall, seizure and prosecution follow the statutory chain; adjudication and appeal are separate from the inspection itself.
Worked example
A manufacturer has ₹25 crore annual turnover but holds only a State licence. The turnover exceeds the ₹20 crore threshold, so a Central licence is required. The State licence does not authorise the operation at that scale; the FBO should apply on FoSCoS and correct the category. The inspection finding is operation without the appropriate licence, not a hygiene violation. The reasoning is threshold → category → correct authority.
Traps
Do not confuse registration with State licence or State with Central licence. Do not assume a licence covers another premises. Do not treat an improvement notice as a fine. Do not wait for a prohibition order before acting on an imminent hazard. Do not confuse best before with use by when assessing enforcement action.