Quality Control, Food Standards and Labelling
QC versus QA
QC tests the product; QA is the system that prevents defects. Typical tests: moisture, ash, fat (Gerber or Soxhlet), protein (Kjeldahl), acidity, TSS, salt, and microbiological counts such as standard plate count, coliforms, yeast and mould. Sampling must be representative; one grab sample does not certify a lot.
Standards in India
The Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, with FSSAI regulations from 2011, governs all food businesses: registration for petty businesses, state licence for medium units, and central licence for large units and importers. BIS/ISI marks are voluntary for most foods but mandatory for notified items; AGMARK grades agricultural produce; Codex Alimentarius is the international reference; ISO 22000 and HACCP certification are voluntary systems.
Labelling essentials
Mandatory particulars: product name, ingredients in descending order, nutritional information per 100 g or 100 ml, veg/non-veg logo (green dot in a square for veg, brown for non-veg), FSSAI logo and 14-digit licence number, net quantity, batch or lot, date of manufacture and best-before or use-by, storage conditions, allergen declaration, and country of origin for imported foods. Claims such as low fat, high fibre or no added sugar have defined thresholds.
Worked example
A biscuit label claims low fat, but the nutrition panel shows 4.2 g fat per 100 g. For a solid food, a low-fat claim generally requires not more than 3 g per 100 g, so the claim is not permissible and must be corrected or removed. Reasoning: claims are checked against the numeric panel, not the marketing copy.
Traps
Confusing best-before with use-by; giving net quantity without drained weight for canned products; reversing ingredient order; putting the veg logo on a product containing gelatin; forgetting that nutrition information is declared per 100 g and per serving.