The Big Question: Is Quick Commerce Sacrificing Safety for Speed?
Expert Insights by Pradip Chakraborty, Former Director – FSSAI
In a country where food is deeply cultural and safety is non-negotiable, the meteoric rise of 10-minute delivery platforms has sparked serious concerns. From expired goods to improper storage, reports of unsafe food being delivered to doorsteps are increasing.
To understand the legal, regulatory, and safety implications, we spoke with Pradip Chakraborty, Ex-Director of FSSAI, on how prepared India’s quick commerce ecosystem truly is to handle food responsibly.
1) Are quick commerce platforms accountable under the food business model, especially for delivery?
Yes. Quick commerce platforms that sell food are considered E-commerce Food Business Operators (FBOs) under the Food Safety and Standards Act (FSS Act). E-commerce refers to buying and selling goods and services over a digital or electronic network—including websites, mobile apps, and television networks.
All E-commerce FBOs must obtain a valid FSSAI license, just like any other food business operator. Additionally, they are required to follow the hygiene and sanitary practices outlined in Schedule 4 of the Food Safety and Standards (Licensing and Registration of Food Businesses) Regulations, 2011. FSSAI also issued specific guidelines for e-commerce FBOs on February 2, 2017, to strengthen compliance.
One key requirement: Any food product delivered must have at least 45 days or 30% of its shelf life remaining, whichever is less, at the time of delivery. This becomes even more crucial in ultrafast delivery models, where the speed of operations must not compromise food safety.
What steps should quick commerce companies take to improve food safety compliance, and avoid incidents like license suspension or improvement notices?
Ans: FSS Act is a self-compliance act. It is FBO’s main responsibility to ensure safety of the food product.
As per Section 27 of the FSS Act the manufacturer or packer shall be liable if it does not meet the requirements of the act and the rules and regulations made thereunder.
Similarly, a wholesaler or distributor shall be liable for food which is:
• Supplied after the date of expiry
• Unsafe or unbranded
• Unidentifiable of the manufacturer from which articles of food received
• Stored or handled or kept in violation of the provisions of this act, the rules and regulations made thereunder received by him with knowledge of being unsafe
• Similarly, the seller has some liability specified in Section 27.
Quick commerce companies shall strictly follow the guidelines to improve food safety and avoid incidents like license suspension or improvement notices.
2) FSSAI has recently intensified monitoring and issued hundreds of improvement notices to quick commerce operators. What are the most common violations you are seeing, and how serious and key for public health?
Ans: As per Section 32 of the FSS Act, 2006, if the designated officer has reasonable ground for believing that any FBO has failed to comply with any regulations he may issue improvement notice to the FBO and FBO shall take measures within the reasonable period (not less than 14 days). If the FBO fails to comply with an improvement notice, his license may be suspended and eventually cancelled.
All FBOs must comply with the labelling & Display Regulations of FSSAI. Most common violations are various provisions of the labelling & display regulations.
Any product claimed online on e-commerce platform should be fully aligned with the information provided on the product’s physical label. Sometimes, violations are made on e-claim.
Public health is seriously affected when the product does not have the shelf life as mandated by the FSSAI i.e. minimum 30% or atleast 45 days before expiry.
Maintenance of proper temperature during transport is sometimes violated, particularly in hot food & cold food which impacts health.
3) The FSSAI has called for strict adherence to expiry date and labelling regulations. What could be the consequences, how is enforcement being strengthened?
Ans: Graded penalty according to the gravity of offense has been prescribed from Section 48 to Section 67 of the FSS Act, 2006.
As per Section 58 of the FSS Act, 2006, whoever contravenes any provisions of Act or the rules or regulations made thereunder, the contravention of which no penalty has been separately provided, shall be liable to penalty which may extend to two lakh rupees.
As per Section 59, punishment for unsafe food has been specified. Where such failure does not result in injury — imprisonment for a term upto 6 months and/or fine upto one lakh rupees has been prescribed.
For non-grievous injury — imprisonment upto one year and fine upto 3 lakh rupees has been prescribed. For grievous injury — imprisonment upto 6 years and fine upto 5 lakh rupees has been prescribed.
For strengthening of enforcement, Food Safety Officer should be given a target of collecting atleast 100 samples per month.
4) How important is training for delivery personnel and proper segregation of food and non-food items in maintaining safety standards in quick commerce?
Ans: Training for delivery personnel, Food Safety Supervisors under FSSAI training programs is essential.
As per advisory dated 3rd December 2024, FBOs to prioritise the training of the last mile delivery personnel. It is essential to ensure that delivery staff are well trained in food safety and hygiene practices. The training should cover safe handling and transportation of food to prevent contamination as well as personal hygiene and proper sanitation procedures.
Additionally, FBOs must ensure that food and non-food items are delivered separately, to avoid the risk of cross contamination, thus safeguarding consumer health.
5) With a sector evolving so quickly, is the regulatory framework keeping pace, or do you see need for new guidelines specifically tailored for quick commerce?
Ans: It is true that this e-commerce sector evolved very quickly and gained momentum during COVID, especially lockdown period. E-commerce saved lives by supplying food to home and a number of delivery personnel were died also.
A number of guidelines and advisories were issued since 2nd February 2017. Since e-commerce is absolutely a new subject, there were some misconceptions about regulating those products, especially regarding to streamline the business.
E-commerce platforms like Zomato, Swiggy & other platforms should come forward and be coordinate with FSSAI for new guidelines specifically tailored for quick commerce.
6) How effective do you think current FSSAI regulations are in ensuring compliance among quick commerce players, and where do you see the biggest gaps?
Ans: FSSAI first made guidelines on 2nd February 2017. FSSAI mandates that all e-commerce food businesses must have food licenses, covering the entire supply chain. This ensures adherence to food safety standards and prevents unauthorised trading of food products online.
E-commerce in food delivery expanded rapidly during the COVID-19 pandemic. While it was a life-saving service at the time, this rapid growth meant that regulations had to play catch-up. Since 2017, multiple guidelines have been issued. But now, it’s time for platforms like Zomato, Swiggy, and others to collaborate with FSSAI to design new, quick-commerce-specific safety protocols. Many challenges are unique to this model—such as ultrafast delivery, high product turnover, and decentralized sourcing—and need tailored solutions.
7). Are the current FSSAI regulations effective, and where are the biggest gaps?
FSSAI’s regulations are well-drafted and cover all critical aspects:
• Mandatory FSSAI license
• Full supply chain compliance
• Clear labelling and nutritional information
• Consumer complaint redressal
• Shelf life
However, enforcement is the weak link. Section 29 of the FSS Act mandates that both Central and State Food Safety Authorities ensure implementation. But in several states, enforcement teams lack the resources and manpower to perform frequent checks. Awareness campaigns alone are not enough without strong, visible enforcement.
8) What advice would you give to quick commerce platforms to build consumer trust and demonstrate robust compliance to regulators and the public?
Ans: Customer is the king in any business. If the same satisfies with quality of the products, then only business will grow and survive.
Since FSSAI is a legal compliance and quick commerce platform should start supervising and deliver personal trained by the FSSAI training schemes like FoSTaC.
They should also get food products only from the FSSAI licensed or registered food business operators who are well versed with food safety norms.
Third party food safety audit agency should be engaged for periodic monitoring of food products.
By taking proactive role, quick commerce platforms can build consumer trust and demonstrate robust compliance to both the regulators & the public.