The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has issued the Food Safety and Standards (Alcoholic Beverages) Second Amendment Regulations, 2025, following public consultation on the draft published in June 2024. Objections and suggestions from stakeholders were considered before finalizing the amendment. The new regulations, effective from 1 June 2026, revise the permissible limit of esters expressed as ethyl acetate in alcoholic beverages, increasing the maximum allowed from 0.2 g/l to 3.0 g/l of absolute alcohol in Table 2 of the 2018 regulations. These amendments are issued under the powers of Section 92(2)(v) of the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, and build on prior amendments made in 2020, 2022, 2023, and 2025. The change aims to update the regulatory standards for alcoholic beverages while ensuring public safety, maintaining consistency with scientific and industry considerations.
FOOD SAFETY AND STANDARDS AUTHORITY OF INDIA
NOTIFICATION
Mumbai, the 19th November, 2025
F. No. Std/SP-21/A-1.2024/N-01.—Whereas the draft of the Food Safety and Standards (Alcoholic Beverages) Amendment Regulations,2024, were published as required by sub-section (1) of section 92 of the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 (34 of 2006) vide the notification of the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India, number File No.: Std/SP-21/A-1.2024/N-01, dated the 13th June, 2024, in the Gazette of India, Extraordinary, Part III, Section 4, for inviting objections and suggestions from all persons likely to be affected thereby, before the expiry of the period of sixty days from the date on which the copies of the Official Gazette containing the said notification were made available to the public;
And whereas copies of the said Gazette were made available to the public on the 21s tJune,2024;
And whereas the objections and suggestions received from the public in respect of the said draft regulations have been considered by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India.
Now, therefore, in exercise of the powers conferred by clause (v) of sub-section (2) of section 92 of the said Act, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India, hereby makes the following regulations further to amend the Food Safety and Standards (Alcoholic Beverages) Regulations, 2018, namely: –
Regulations
1. These regulations may be called the Food Safety and Standards (Alcoholic Beverages) Second Amendment Regulations, 2025.
2. They shall come into force on 01st June, 2026.
3. In the Food Safety and Standards (Alcoholic Beverages) Regulations, 2018, in Table 2, against S.No 7 relating to “Esters expressed as ethyl acetate (g/l of absolute alcohol), Max” in the entry under column (7), for the figures “0.2” the figures “3.0” shall be substituted.
RAJIT PUNHANI, Chief Executive Officer
[ADVT.-III/4/Exty./496/2025-26]
Note: The principal regulations were published in the Gazette of India, Extraordinary, Part III, Section 4 vide notification number F. No. 2/SA-24/2009(1)/FSSAI, dated the 19th March, 2018 and subsequently amended vide notification numbers:
F. No. Stds/SP (water and Beverages)/Notification (1)/FSSAI-2019, dated the 18th December, 2020;
F. No. Std/SP-21/T(Alcohol-5), dated the 10th June, 2022.
F. No. STD/SP-21/T(Alcohol-4), dated the 21st August, 2023.and
F. No. STD/SP-21/T(Alcohol-6), dated the 20th June, 2025.
