FSSAI Received 21K Complaints Against Food Delivery Apps In Five Years: Govt

In the last five fiscal years, more than 21,000 consumer complaints against online food delivery apps were registered with the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), the government has informed the Parliament.

In a written response to the Rajya Sabha, Minister of State for Food and Consumer Affairs BL Verma said that the FSSAI conducts regular inspections, monitoring, and random sampling of food products sold online through e-commerce platforms, including those from manufacturers, sellers, hotels, and restaurants, NDTV Profit reported. 

A total of 21,042 grievances were filed with the FSSAI during this period. In 2024-25, the number of grievances stood at 7,482, compared to 4,708 in 2023-24, 4,321 in 2022-23, 3,726 in 2021-22, and 805 in 2020-21.

Other Complaints Mounting Against Food Delivery Platforms

Earlier last month, the All India Consumer Products Distributors Federation (AICPDF) reportedly filed a petition with the Competition Commission of India (CCI) against quick commerce players like Blinkit, Zepto and Swiggy Instamart alleging unfair pricing and monopolising the market.

In January, the National Restaurant Association of India (NRAI) approached the CCI to intervene regarding the launch of 10-minute food delivery standalone apps, Bistro and Snacc, disturbing the restaurant brands with their entry in private labelling and selling food directly via new labels.

Further, the companies have also been in trouble for their quick commerce labels, for refusing to make mandatory disclosures such as expiry and best before date for grocery and other daily essentials being sold on their platforms.

The Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) sent notices to 11 ecommerce and quick commerce companies, including Blinkit, Zepto, Meesho, among others, for flouting metrology norms, in October last year.

Following which, the FSSAI hosted a meeting with the quick commerce labels in November 2024, to address concerns related to sale of packaged food items, which are nearing their expiry dates, on these platforms.

FSSAI Issue Norms For Ecommerce, Foodtech Platforms

Issued in December last year, the FSSAI advisory directed food delivery and quick commerce platforms to comply with five new measures to ensure consumer safety and product integrity, which included prioritising the training of last-mile delivery executives in food safety and hygiene practices.

It also barred foodtech platforms from listing any seller on their platform without displaying their FSSAI licence or registration numbers. 

This was brought in force after the FSSAI team found 90 packets of button mushrooms labelled with a “future packing date” on a food safety raid at Zomato’s Hyperpure warehouse in Hyderabad, in October last year.