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India needs a comprehensive review of labelling requirements for drugs, foods, and Ayush medicines to ensure clarity, consistency, and consumer safety across regulated products, said D B Anantha Narayana, CSO, Ayurvidye Trust.
In September 2025, the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) had proposed mandatory Braille labels and QR codes with voice assistance on medicine packs in India. This was deliberated during the 58th meeting of the Drugs Consultative Committee (DCC) on July 14, 2020 which acknowledged the seriousness of the issue and recommended the formation of a sub-committee to study the proposal in depth.
Variations in labelling standards, disclosure norms, and compliance expectations can lead to confusion, misinformation, and uneven enforcement. A harmonized and updated approach is therefore essential to protect consumers, support responsible manufacturers, and strengthen regulatory oversight in line with global best practices, Dr Narayana told Pharmabiz.
The design elements of a label on a pack are important. One aspect is the large amount of text to be provided and the other is to comply with prescribed font sizes. There is need to indicate brand and generic names. Text is mandated on front of pack (FOP) and on the back of panel (BOP). There is need for adequate space for coding area of batch, expiry, price and license number. It is not known who is to be blamed as in spite of so much technology, readability of text printed on aluminium foil, other strip and blister packs has never been solved till today, said Dr Narayana questioning if it is lack of will or disinterest or cost that is the stumbling block.
In a pharma product label, the extent of text is still not very large compared to that of a food product or a nutraceutical supplement label. Here, there is a need to provide all ingredients in descending order, specifying serving sizes and giving mandatory nutrition table along with disclaimers and references to RDA (recommended dietary allowance), he said.
In spite of this, food product labels do not provide consumer centric information on levels of fats, sugar and salt (FSS) which are important for health in the wake of increasing non-communicable diseases. This aspect is subjudice as on date as Supreme Court has asked an expert panel to review FOP warning label for packaged food and the final judgement is awaited, said Dr Narayana.
In the case of Ayurveda products, the information load goes up further as most proprietary medicines have multiple ingredients in the composition. In some cases, the number of ingredients goes as high as 40. The label requires common name, botanical name, part of the plant, and proportion.
Additionally, in many food products and Ayurveda products colours with the CI (colour index) numbers, preservatives and their proportions are also to be labelled. Requirements under Legal Metrology has expanded requiring detailed consumer care information for complaints and redressal, including a phone number or email address and when it comes to pricing, cost per gram or per unit of the product. In India, labelling standards are beginning to gain traction, alongside rising consumer awareness. Marketers should recognise that consumers have the right to clear information on the product, its usage, storage and safety. Concurrently, marketers need their appropriate liberty to balance the design, branding, imagery and projection of the product along with consumer centric information. Regulators and industry should work to develop clean label texts, said Dr Narayana.
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