'₹150 Crore Inventory At Risk': Dabur In Petition Against FSSAI Ban On ‘100%’ Claims

In its petition challenging the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India’s (FSSAI) order restricting the sale of food products carrying “100%” claims, Dabur India has alleged that the regulator’s action has put inventory worth around ₹150 crore at risk.

According to a report by Moneycontrol, Dabur argued that the ban was issued without proper reasoning and that claims such as “100% pure” or “100%” do not make any comparison with products of other manufacturers.

The company said such claims are commonly used across the industry and do not undermine competing brands.

Dabur alleges unfair treatment by FSSAI

The maker of Réal fruit juices and Odonil moved the court after FSSAI directed companies to stop selling products featuring the “100%” claim with immediate effect. The regulator also asked Dabur to submit an action-taken report within 15 days.

According to the report, Dabur alleged that FSSAI issued the order without providing a show-cause notice, improvement notice or an opportunity to explain its position.

The company claimed that action was taken in a mechanical manner without properly reviewing product labels.

The company said the order affected 11 major products, including Dabur Honey, Dabur Virgin Coconut Oil and Réal Activ Coconut Water.

It also claimed that some products mentioned in the regulator’s order did not carry the disputed claim on their labels.

Dabur stated that products such as DABUR HOMMADE Coconut Milk and DABUR Cold Pressed Sesame Oil did not display the “100%” claim, arguing that this reflected a lack of proper assessment before issuing the order.

Company begins label transition process

According to FSSAI, Dabur’s use of the “100%” claim was misleading and violated the Food Safety and Standards (Advertising and Claims) Regulations, 2018.

Dabur said it had already started changing product labels, advertisements and online references to remove the disputed claim. The company added that most of the products and promotional material mentioned in the FSSAI communication have either already been updated or are undergoing changes.

The legal dispute comes amid wider regulatory scrutiny of food advertising claims, with FSSAI seeking stricter compliance from manufacturers over product labelling and marketing practices.