New Delhi, July 13 -- The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has intensified its scrutiny of annual returns filed by food business operators (FBOs), issuing a stern warning of penalties for non-compliance and inaccurate data.

In an order dated 6 July, seen by Mint, the food regulator highlighted the critical importance of accurate and complete information in these mandatory submissions.

This move comes after an observation that many returns contained discrepancies, inconsistencies or false declarations.

The directive, issued by Dr Satyen Kumar Panda, Executive Director (Compliance Strategy), emphasized that all licensing authorities are now required to strictly scrutinize annual returns submitted by eligible FBOs with...