FSSAI has proposed restricting the use of the name paneer for products made from constituents not derived from milk. The proposal appears in Gazette notification 276430, published on 23 September 2026. It is a draft regulation.
The notification itself is dated 22 September. Its reference is RCD-15001/1/2024-Regulatory-FSSAI. Page 3 proposes adding clause (12) to regulation 2.1.1 of the Food Safety and Standards (Prohibition and Restrictions on Sales) Regulations, 2011.
Page 2 explains the intended restriction on manufacturing and selling analogue products as paneer. The proposed text says products already licensed or registered in the Analogue in Dairy Context category would stop using paneer in their names, labels or marketing. FSSAI states that the purpose is to prevent misleading consumers about product composition.
The draft invites objections and suggestions for 60 days from the date Gazette copies become available to the public. We have not calculated a closing date from the printed publication date. The notification gives the FSSAI chief executive's postal address and regulation@fssai.gov.in for submissions.
This proposal follows an FSSAI West Region public notice dated 21 April 2026. That notice told centrally licensed cheese analogue manufacturers and food service establishments that selling or displaying cheese analogue as paneer violates existing food law, and directed clearer naming and menu disclosure. It is an earlier regional enforcement notice, separate from the September draft amendment.
What is confirmed
The official PDF contains the proposal and consultation terms. A Ministry of Health and Family Welfare release on PIB, dated 24 September, also describes it as a draft. The earlier FSSAI West Region notice addresses cheese analogue sold or displayed as paneer under existing law.
What is not confirmed
This Gazette notification does not establish that the proposed nationwide amendment is already in force. This report does not assess enforcement outside the cited West Region notice or the safety of any particular product.
Our reading
For readers tracking food rules, the next record to watch is a final amendment or further official clarification. The existence of a draft is not evidence that every non-milk substitute is prohibited.
Read the evidence behind this story
The selected passages below retain their source links and extraction details. Open the official document or release for the full text.
RCD-15001/1/2024-Regulatory-FSSAI · Gazette PDF · Native text
FSSAI draft regulation on analogue products sold as paneer
Read the public recordOfficial Gazette PDFEnglish text from PDF page 2
What we found in the collected text
(12) paneer made of constituents not derived from milk.English reading aid
The proposed clause addresses paneer made from constituents that do not come from milk. It appears under Draft Regulations.
Plain-English reading aid checked against the original PDF. This selected passage is not the full regulation; read pages 2 and 3 for the draft and consultation terms.
Check provenance and extraction limits
- Notification date
- Collected
- Editorial source check
- Method
- Native PDF text extraction. PDF pages 2–3; pypdf 6.10.0.
- Stored content hash
sha256:cf65bae84639c8dc2914c0f90d271342a2f1f1494ba2d11bd01371631a386ab2- Limit
- The hash identifies the original PDF bytes. The quoted clause is on PDF page 3; the draft and consultation terms are on page 2. The notification is dated 22 September; the Gazette is dated 23 September 2026.
Next source checks: PIB explanation, 24 September 2026FSSAI West Region notice, 21 April 2026