Shillong, Nov 25: The state government has launched a statewide recall of ‘ORS’ beverages following a directive from the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI).
The FSSAI directive came in the wake of an eight-year-old complaint filed by a medical professional regarding misleading branding practices of Oral Rehydration Salts (ORS).
However, it has been clarified that the order is strictly related to misbranding and consumption misuse, not the ORS formula itself.
“ORS is a therapeutic product. But over time, some ORS-labelled drinks have started being used and sold as regular beverages, which is not permitted,” said DBS Mukhim, Assistant Commissioner of Food Safety.
Retailers and distributors have been instructed to remove the products from the market. Retailers must pack and return existing stock to distributors, while distributors are responsible for collecting the recalled items and sending them back to the manufacturers.
“Each stakeholder has a specific role,” Mukhim noted. “Only the manufacturer can make the required labelling corrections since this is a regulatory compliance issue.”
The Food Safety department stressed that WHO-formula ORS — used in medical settings to treat dehydration — remains unaffected. These therapeutic ORS products do not require FSSAI licensing and are not classified as food.
What has been recalled instead are ORS-branded packaged beverages licensed under FSSAI that may mislead consumers into treating them as everyday drinks.
“These products will be temporarily withdrawn, but they will return after the labeling is corrected,” Mukhim assured.
