Food testing and laboratory resources

Who tests food, officially

Under the FSS Rules, 2011, a 'notified laboratory' is one notified by the Food Authority under section 43 of the Act, and a 'referral laboratory' is one established or recognised by the Food Authority under the same section, generally used for confirmatory or appellate testing.

FSSAI publishes and periodically updates lists of its NABL-accredited notified food testing laboratories, along with their accreditation validity and scope of testing, through its lab network portal (INFOLNET) and periodic validity orders.

How an official sample gets tested

When a Food Safety Officer takes a sample under the Act, it is sent for analysis under the sampling and analysis procedure in section 47 of the FSS Act, 2006.

Separately, a purchaser (not a Food Safety Officer) can have a food sample analysed by a Food Analyst on payment of a fee under section 40 of the Act, provided the seller is informed of this intention at the time of purchase. If the Food Analyst's report finds non-compliance, the purchaser is entitled to a refund of the fee, and the report is forwarded for possible prosecution.

How a consumer can get food tested, officially

The documented consumer-facing routes are: (1) use the section 40 provision described above at the time of purchase, if you plan ahead; (2) report a suspected food safety issue via Food Safety Connect (FoSCoS) so that a Food Safety Officer can decide whether to draw an official sample; and (3) where available in your state, Food Safety on Wheels mobile testing units, a Central Sector Scheme providing mobile food testing laboratories to States/UTs for on-the-spot testing and awareness.

We do not publish a general public 'send us your sample' service of our own, and we have not found an official, India-wide, walk-in public sample-testing service for individual consumers beyond the routes above. If you know of one specific to your state, check with your state food safety department.

Food Safety on Wheels

Food Safety on Wheels is FSSAI's scheme for mobile food testing laboratories (Mobile Food Testing Laboratories, MFTL), funded centrally and operated by States/UTs or their agencies, intended for on-the-spot basic food testing and consumer awareness, including training and demonstrations.