Compliance is not a one-time filing — regulations amend, product lines grow, licences need renewing, and the questions never stop: which category is this product, can we make this claim, what does this new notification mean for us? Most growing food businesses need regulatory judgement far more often than they can justify a full-time regulatory hire.
Our consulting retainers give you working access to practitioners with 20+ years in food and nutraceutical regulation — for strategy, filings, classifications and the daily questions in between.
Who is this service for?
- Growing brands without an in-house regulatory team
- Manufacturers needing annual returns, renewals and change management handled
- Businesses navigating recalls, improvement notices or FSO action
- Leadership teams needing regulatory input on product and market strategy
What is included?
- On-call regulatory advisory for product, claim and category questions
- Annual return (Form D-1) preparation and filing
- Product category classification and schedule mapping
- Recall and traceability support when things go wrong
- Regulatory-change monitoring relevant to your portfolio
How does the process work?
- 1Portfolio and licence review at onboarding
- 2Compliance calendar established (renewals, returns, audits)
- 3Ongoing advisory with agreed response times
- 4Quarterly compliance review
How long does it take?
Retainers run monthly or annually. Onboarding review is typically completed within the first two weeks.
Common mistakes we correct
- Missing Form D-1 deadlines because no one owns the compliance calendar
- Product categories chosen for GST convenience rather than FSSAI correctness
- Discovering at renewal that operations no longer match the licence
Frequently Asked Questions
Who must file FSSAI annual returns?
Manufacturers (including relabellers and repackers) and importers must file Form D-1 annually for each licence; milk and milk-product businesses file an additional half-yearly return (Form D-2). Late filing attracts per-day penalties, so the calendar matters as much as the form.
How is a retainer better than one-off consulting?
Regulatory problems are cheapest before they become filings and impossible after they become notices. A retainer means questions get asked early — and your renewals, returns and change management never depend on remembering to hire help in time.
Regulations that apply
- Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 and Rules
- FSS (Licensing and Registration) Regulations, 2011 — returns and renewals