FSSAI's analogue paneer scrutiny: what the dairy category means for consumers
Analogue paneer is not illegal by definition, but presenting it as conventional dairy paneer is what draws FSSAI scrutiny.
The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has turned its attention to analogue paneer, a product that sits in a distinct regulatory space rather than being automatically unlawful.
Under India's food safety framework, "Analogue in Dairy Context" is a recognised category. This means a product does not become illegal simply because it is an analogue — that is, a formulation that mimics a dairy item without being one in the conventional sense.
The regulatory problem arises at the point of representation. Action is warranted when such a product is passed off to consumers as conventional paneer or as another dairy product. In other words, the offence lies in misleading labelling or marketing, not in the existence of the analogue itself.
For consumers, the distinction matters because it separates two different issues: the composition of a product and the claims made about it. A product may legitimately exist as an analogue while still being subject to rules on how it is described and sold.
The FSSAI's categorisation of analogue dairy items therefore provides a framework within which such products can be regulated, while the crackdown focuses on cases where the line between analogue and conventional dairy is blurred for the buyer.