As per Section 22 (4) of the FSSA, proprietary or novel food means an article of food for which standards have not been specified but is not unsafe. As per Regulation 2.12.1 of the Act, proprietary food means a food that has not been standardised under these regulations.
According to the official, the definition of proprietary foods, given in the Act, is a misnomer. “If existing traditional or ethnic foods are called proprietary or non standard foods, their manufacturers, who are mostly petty FBOs who have been in business for decades, will incur huge losses. They are not proprietary foods. Also, it is unfair to expect them to obtain approvals on their wares,” he said.
Neither were standards formulated in the Prevention of Food Adulteration Act (PFA) and Rules, 1954, for the manufacture of traditional or ethnic foods, nor were any approvals needed for the same. But they were defined as proprietary foods.
“A food item manufactured by more than one person cannot be termed as proprietary foods. In the larger interest, it is suggested the definition of proprietary food be amended in the Act, Rules and Regulations, and should be as follows: A proprietary food is a food which is legally made only by a person or a body of persons having special rights to that food,” the official said.
