The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Thursday, October 15, issued a statewide compliance order for the spice trade. It bans the loose, unpacked sale of powdered spices and mixed masalas and prohibits colouring agents such as Metanil Yellow, Rhodamine B, Sudan dyes, and lead chromate. FDA Commissioner Tukaram Mundhe signed the order, which has immediate effect.

The order covers everyone from producers and grinders to wholesalers, retailers, e-commerce platforms, hotels and caterers. Spices must be packed and sealed at the place of production. Ethylene oxide, a carcinogen, cannot be used to sterilise spices. Drying spices on roads, drains or near cattle sheds is banned. Grinding on a trade licence alone is not allowed, and claims of purity, naturalness, or organic origin need proof.