Starting a food business in India is a little complicated task; a person who wants to commence a food business in India has to obtain Food Registration License from the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India. Without a food registration license, a person cannot start a food business. For getting food registration for business, there are several other laws that have to be followed, and a person has to take several additional permissions and no-objection certificates from various authorities. In this article, we discuss how to obtain a food registration license and other licenses and registration from various authorities to start a food business.
An Overview of Food Registration in India
In India, if an entrepreneur wants to start a food business, the essential requirement is obtaining a food registration license and other various licenses such as Health/trade License, registration under the Shop and Establishment Act, Registration under the Goods and Services Tax, and has to follow other various regulations of the local, state, and central authorities. The requirement depends on the size of the food business. The same goes for obtaining food registration. Food registration is also done on the basis of the size of the food business. There are three different food registration categories as prescribed by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI). Following are the three Category of food registration license under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006:
Basic Food Registration: Basic Food Registration is for the Food Business that has an annual turnover of not more than INR 12 lakhs.
FSSAI Central Food Registration License: This License is granted to the food businesses that have an annual turnover of not more than INR 20 crores.
FSSAI State Food Registration License: This license is granted to the food businesses that have an annual turnover of more than INR 20 crores.
So for starting a food business, an individual has to finalize the type of business he/she wants to start and what type of food registration is required.
Legal Requirements to Start a Food Business in India
There are several legal requirements to start a food business; an entrepreneur has to take several licenses and is required to a lot of registration under various kinds of acts and with different authorities. Following are the legal requirements:
Registration of Business Entity
A food business has to be a registered business entity. A food business can be registered as any kind of company such as Proprietorship, One Person Company, Partnership Firm, Limited Liability Company, Private Limited Company, etc. For registering as one of the mentioned companies, an entrepreneur has followed compliances of the Companies Act.
FSSAI Food License
FSSAI food registration license is one of the necessary conditions that need to be fulfilled for starting a food business. As FSSAI food license is given assurance to the consumer that food they are consuming is safe, and the food business has maintained certain standards prescribed under the Food Safety and Standards Act (FSSA), 2006. FSSA was enacted in 2006 by the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare. As mentioned earlier, the FSSAI license is granted on the basis of the annual turnover of the food business.
Goods and Services Tax Registration
If a food business comes in the tax slab prescribed by India's government, then the business has to be registered under the Goods and Services Tax (GST). Registration under Goods and Services Tax is necessary for a food business if it comes under the tax slab to continue the business legally and for avoiding heavy penalties for incompliance. For Goods and Services Tax registration, the applicant can go to the official GST registration website and get GST registration by submitting the required documents and information.
Trademark Registration of Food Business
A trademark is a sign or a logo that helps in determining the brand image of the business. A trademark is helpful for food businesses as it creates an image in the eyes of the customer. Trademark registration can be done on the official online portal of the Trademark office.
Shop & Establishment Act
Registration under the Shop & Establishment Act is necessary for every food business. A food business has to file within thirty days from the commencement of the food business to obtain registration under the Shop and Establishment Act. Shop and Establishment act registration is required for establishments such as Hotels, Eateries, theater, amusement parks, and other kinds of shops. The registration of the shop and establishment Act can be obtained on the official website.
Fire Department NOC
The food manufacturing company has to obtain a No objection Certificate (NOC) from the fire department. For obtaining NOC, the manufacturing company has to show a fire security plan along with an application to the fire department. After that, authorities will conduct an inspection of the premise of the manufacturing unit, and if they are satisfied with the fire security plan, a No Objection Certificate will be granted.
Other Miscellaneous Regulations
Other regulations that are necessary for starting a food business in India are:
Music License if the food business wants to play music on the business premise.
Environment Clearance certificate to make sure that the food business in any way is not harming the environment.
Health/Trade License is given to the food business by the local municipal authority over the concern of public welfare.
Liquor or Bar License is mandatory for a food business that offers alcoholic beverages for public consumption.
Any person who wants to start food business it is necessary to obtain certain certificates and licenses according to the type of food business as for small food business, most of the above-mentioned compliances are not required.
Now for starting the food business, an entrepreneur has to submit the required registrations and licenses along with the prescribed personal and business-related documents to the concerned authorities.
Conclusion
To start a food business is a complex process as the owner of the business has to satisfy different authorities and comply with the provisions of various laws. Still, this process is there to ensure the public health and safety.