Food Regulator Asks Licensing Wing To Issue Notice To Patanjali

New Delhi: Food regulator FSSAI has asked its central licensing authority to issue a show cause notice to Patanjali Ayurved over complaints about misleading advertisement of mustard oil product.

The development has come after edible oil industry body Solvent Extractors Association (SEA) filed complaints with FSSAI and advertising industry watchdog ASCI against Patanjali Ayurved for alleged misleading advertisements for mustard oil and sought action against the yoga guru Ramdev-promoted firm. FSSAI in an order asked its Central Licensing Authority, Northern Region, to issue a show cause notice to Patanjali Ayurved for “violations of FSS Act 2006, Rules and Regulations made there under and submit action taken report thereon to this office at the earliest”.

The copy of the order was made public by SEA on Wednesday. Sources in FSSAI said that the authority has sought a response from Patanjali over the issue. There was no immediate response to queries sent to Patanjali in this regard.

The advertisement is unnecessarily misleading the consumer and also derogatory and denigrating to the oil industry, SEA had said, adding that the vegetable oil industry was a responsible industry and such unfounded communications negate the image of the industry. Also, ASCI has rapped Patanjali Ayurved for “false and misleading” claims in its various advertisements.

To make profits at the cost of consumers’ health, many companies mix cheap palm oil in mustard oil”, were not substantiated and the claims were misleading,” ACSI said last week.

Patanjali, on the other hand, had insisted that its commercial was based on facts, findings and research. They did not intend to mislead anyone.