04 August,2026 04:44 PM IST | | mid-day online correspondent
The government also flagged the "7 years old blended" claim on an Old Monk XXX Rum variant as misleading, stating that under the 2018 regulations. Representational Pic
The Centre on Tuesday clarified that the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI)'s recent enforcement action against certain alcoholic beverage manufacturers was aimed at curbing the use of flavouring substances that mimic standardised alcoholic beverages and misleading age-related claims on product labels.
In a statement, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) said the action was initiated after investigations found that some manufacturers were producing alcoholic beverages using spirit or extra-neutral alcohol and adding external flavours to recreate the aroma and taste of standard products such as rum and whisky.
The ministry said such products were being misrepresented by using the names of standard categories despite being sub-standard under the Food Safety and Standards (Alcoholic Beverages) Regulations, 2018. It added that consumers were not being adequately informed about the true nature of these products.
According to the ministry, laboratory testing of sampled rum and whisky products from multiple manufacturers detected the presence of artificial or nature-identical flavours. It said these externally added flavours masked the products' natural flavour profile, rendering them sub-standard under existing food safety norms.
The government also flagged the "7 years old blended" claim on an Old Monk XXX Rum variant as misleading, stating that under the 2018 regulations, the age of a blended spirit is determined by the youngest spirit used in the blend.
Based on laboratory findings, FSSAI issued prohibition-of-sale orders against products manufactured at Mohan Rocky Springwater's Khopoli unit, United Spirits' Baramati facility, INBREW Beverages in Madhya Pradesh, Associated Alcohol & Breweries in Madhya Pradesh, and another United Spirits unit in the state.
The affected brands include Old Monk rum variants, McDowell's No.1 Rum, Bagpiper Deluxe Whisky, Old Cask Deluxe XXX Rum, Antiquity Blue Whisky and Royal Challenge Whisky.
The ministry also said inspections and product sampling were carried out at Mandexi Distilleries & Breweries in Goa, while notices were issued to six other manufacturers in Maharashtra.
Clarifying its regulatory position, the ministry said flavouring substances such as coffee and vanilla are permitted where legally allowed and supported by a legitimate technological justification.
However, it stressed that the current action concerns the addition of flavours representing the standardised alcoholic beverage itself, such as rum flavour in rum or whisky flavour in whisky, which is not permitted under the regulations.
The ministry also clarified that the action is limited to specific manufacturers and should not be viewed as representative of the entire alcohol industry, noting that several companies continue to manufacture alcoholic beverages in compliance with prescribed standards.
