Frequently asked questions

FoodQuality.in is an independent, consumer-first platform for food safety awareness, a public report tracker, food-safety news, and genuine consumer reviews in India. We are not a government authority.

No. FoodQuality.in is independent. Submitting a report here never files an official complaint with FSSAI, a consumer commission, or any other authority. We link you to the official channels for that.

No. Use the official channel for your issue, such as FSSAI's Food Safety Connect, the National Consumer Helpline, or e-Jagriti for a consumer commission case. Our How to complain guide links to each. You can file a report here in addition, as an independent public record.

No. Public content, including published reports, the awareness hub, laws, and the public analytics dashboard, is visible to everyone without an account.

A Trusted user is a registered user granted extra permissions by a Super Admin, such as contributing articles, suggesting corrections, or helping verify reports, depending on what the site currently allows Trusted users to do.

Moderators (Editor/Admin roles) and Super Admins review reports, evidence, news and recalls before anything is published publicly. See our Editorial policy for our approach to sourcing and corrections.

Yes. You need a registered account with a verified email to submit a report, upload evidence, and track it.

It moves through a workflow: submitted, under review, verification in progress, then verified, unverified, resolved or closed (or needs_info if a moderator asks you for more detail). Every status change is recorded, and you get a notification.

It means a moderator reviewed the report and could confirm it using a stated method and source. Every other visible status is shown as 'User-submitted report. Not independently verified.'

Yes. You can withdraw a report from your account's report page. Withdrawn reports are no longer treated as active.

The platform checks for likely duplicates (same category, product/brand/seller, area and a similar incident date) and shows them to moderators as 'similar reports' rather than publishing near-duplicates separately.

Yes. The Explore reports page shows published reports with filters by category, state, district and status, without revealing reporter identity.

No. Your identity is never shown publicly. A published report shows 'Submitted by a registered user.' Business or brand names are shown publicly only after moderation.

Evidence is stored privately by default. Image metadata, such as EXIF and GPS location data, is stripped before storage. An uploaded image only becomes publicly visible if a moderator reviews and approves it as public; PDFs such as receipts stay private.

Reporter identity is never shown publicly. Published reports say 'Submitted by a registered user', and the reported business is not named publicly until a moderator has reviewed the report.

See our Privacy policy for the full list. In general: account details (email, display name), the reports and evidence you submit, and limited technical data such as hashed IP addresses used for security and abuse prevention.

See our Privacy policy for current retention periods, which can differ by data type (for example, account data vs. security logs).

See our Privacy policy, which describes your rights, including rights available under India's Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023, and how to exercise them.

No. They are general information written from official and authoritative sources (FSSAI, Department of Consumer Affairs, India Code, WHO, and similar), with sources cited. For a specific legal problem, consult a qualified professional or the relevant official authority.

They are indicative only, based on FSSAI's published DART guide. A positive or negative household result does not confirm or rule out adulteration; only an accredited laboratory can do that. See our Food testing page for official testing routes.

No. Our food-poisoning content is general, non-diagnostic information sourced from WHO and similar official bodies, and includes general signs for when to seek medical care. It does not replace seeing a doctor.

Recalls and news items on this platform are always linked to an official or otherwise verifiable source. See our Editorial policy for how we handle sourcing, verification states, and corrections.

See our How to complain guide, which lists the right official route (for example FSSAI's Food Safety Connect, or the National Consumer Helpline) depending on your issue.

Filing here creates an independent, public record and can inform other consumers and our own awareness/analytics content. Filing with FSSAI (or another official authority) is what actually triggers an official investigation or regulatory action.