Delhi High Court says FSSAI cannot regulate animal feed

• 10 Apr 2026
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On 7 April 2026, the Delhi High Court said that the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) does not have the power to set standards for food meant for animals. It said that the authority’s job is only limited to food meant for human consumption. A Division Bench consisting of Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya and Justice Tejas Karia made the decision. They overturned a rule from the FSSAI that said feed for milk and meat-producing animals, except for poultry, pigs and fish, could not contain meat or bone meal. 

The bench held, “In absence of specific inclusion of any substance as food for animal consumption, or cattle feed, or feed for animal in the definition clause, in our considered opinion, all the functions of the Food Authority vested in Section 16 and duties cast on it are in relation to food for human consumption and will not include the animal or cattle feed.” 

The court made the decision while hearing a plea that challenged Note (c) appended to Regulation 2.5.2 of the Food Safety and Standards (Food Products Standards and Food Additives) Regulations, 2011. 

BIS Certification for Animal Feed Not Within FSSAI’s Jurisdiction

As per the requirement that was set forth by FSSAI in the Note, animals raised for milk or meat, except for poultry, pigs and fish, could not be fed meat or bone meal, including internal organs, blood meal or tissues from cows or pigs. The Note mandated that commercial feeds comply with Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) specifications, carrying the mandatory BIS mark. The food industry regulator defended the regulation during the hearing. It stated that the Act empowers its to ensure food safety and protect public health.

It said that the restriction was necessary because the Department of Animal Husbandry had raised concerns about possible food safety risks, especially with dairy imports. The court, on the other hand, said that FSSAI could not mandate Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) certification for animal feed because this was not within its authority.

The bench said, "Making any BIS standard mandatory is the function of the central government and the Bureau created under the BIS Act, and in absence of any such direction… it was not competent for the Food Authority to have made the requirement of BIS standard mandatory.”

The HC invalidated FSSAI orders from 2019 to 2021 that said BIS certification was necessary for commercial animal feed.

Source: New Indian Express