The Delhi High Court on Tuesday set aside a Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) order that directed Red Bull India Private Ltd to stop using the term “energy drink” on its labels, ruling that the directive was issued without giving the company a chance to respond or explain its stance. This victory for Red Bull sets a significant precedent that could raise hopes for other firms facing similar regulatory action.
In June, FSSAI issued notices to several brands including Red Bull, PepsiCo’s Adrenaline Rush, Sting, Monster Energy, Hell Energy and Reliance Consumer Products’ Campa Energy. The notices said these caffeinated beverages could not carry the “energy drink” label.
said its food category system is not intended for product naming or labelling. It also said claims such as “stimulates mind”, “energises body”, “enhances focus”, “boosts energy levels” and “aids in general weakness” were not permissible unless legally supported.
Hearing a plea filed by Red Bull, Justice Amit Mahajan rejected the FSSAI counsel’s argument that its 30 June communication was merely a request to modify the label. “You don’t request anyone, first of all you are the government,” the court remarked, adding, “That’s not show cause, that’s an order.”
FSSAI also pointed out that Red Bull had participated in a meeting with the regulator on 24 July and had agreed to make the relevant changes within 60 days. Red Bull’s counsel, however, said the meeting took place after the 30 June order. The court then noted that FSSAI passed the order “without affording any opportunity to [Red Bull] to file any reply or give any explanation”.
The court also clarified that it had not gone into the merits of the dispute, including whether Red Bull’s product actually violates the FSSAI Act or applicable regulations, or whether FSSAI has the power to direct the company to stop using the descriptor. Rather, the regulator has been instructed to proceed afresh. But this time, FSSAI will have to issue a show-cause notice and give Red Bull an opportunity to be heard before taking an adverse decision.
India’s energy drinks market is expanding rapidly. Euromonitor estimates sales are growing 12.6% annually, faster than in the US and China. The market is expected to be worth $1.6 billion by 2028, according to a Reuters report.
Queries sent to Red Bull and FSSAI remained unanswered at the time of publishing.
Wider labeling scrutiny
This is not the first case where FSSAI has taken action against product labels. In June, following laboratory tests that detected external artificial or nature-identical flavouring substances, the food regulator prohibited the sale of specific variants of:
- McDowell’s No. 1 Rum, Antiquity Blue Whisky, and Royal Challenge Whisky manufactured by United Spirits;
- select Old Monk rum variants produced by Mohan Rocky Springwater; and
- Bagpiper Deluxe Whisky and Old Cask Deluxe XXX Rum made by Inbrew Beverages.
The regulator said Old Monk cannot be sold as rum because the product is made using neutral spirit and rum flavouring, arguing it should instead be labelled as “rum flavoured spirit”. FSSAI also raised concerns over Old Monk’s “7 years old blended” claim, saying that actual matured rum made up less than 5% of the blend.
On 31 August, the Old Monk maker told the Bombay High Court it was ready to relabel its products to remove the “7 years old blended” claim.