Rose, tulsi...: If chai isn't purely from tea plant, you can't call it tea, says FSSAI

KOLKATA: Are you hooked on ‘herbal tea’? Do you unwind sipping on ‘flower tea’?

Your favourite hot beverages have suddenly lost their ‘tea’ tag, though their appeal is set to endure.


The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) issued a directive on Dec 24 asking all food business operators and e-commerce platforms not to use the word ‘tea’ for any kind of blends or infusions that do not come from tea plants, whose scientific name is Camellia sinensis.

The flavoured tea segment in India is growing rapidly — around 40%-45% annually — driven by urbanisation and evolving taste preferences. Tea industry experts estimate that the size of the flavoured or infusion tea market is around 60 million kg in volume and Rs 3,600 crore in value, accounting for around 10% of packaged tea consumption.

“It has come to the notice of FSSAI that some Food Business Operators (FBOs) are marketing products that are not obtained from the plant Camellia sinensis under the name ‘Tea’, such as ‘Rooibos Tea’, ‘Herbal Tea’, ‘Flower Tea’, etc... It is clarified that, as per standards specified under 2.10.1 of the Food Safety and Standards (Food Product Standards and Food Additives) Regulations, 2011, tea (including Kangra Tea, Green Tea, and Instant Tea in solid form) shall be exclusively from the plant of the Camellia sinensis,” the FSSAI order of Dec 24 states.

Sub-regulation (1) of regulation 5 of the Food Safety and Standards (Labelling and Display) Regulations, 2020 specifies that every package shall carry the name of the food, which indicates the true nature of the food, on the front of the pack.

“Therefore, the use of the word ‘Tea’ directly or indirectly for any other plant-based or herbal infusions or blends not derived from Camellia sinensis is misleading and amounts to misbranding under the provisions of the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, and the rules/regulations made thereunder,” the regulator has observed.

Given the regulation, FSSAI has stated that plant-based or herbal infusions or blends not derived from Camellia sinensis do not qualify to be called ‘tea’.

“Accordingly, all Food Business Operators, including e-commerce platforms engaged in manufacturing, packing, marketing, import, or sale of such products, are directed to... refrain from using the term ‘Tea’ for any products not derived from Camellia sinensis,” the order says.

Bijoy Gopal Chakraborty, president of Confederation of Indian Small Tea Growers’ Association (CISTA), said, “Tea itself is a natural healthy wellness drink, and we should promote it and drink it.”

Rudra Chatterjee, managing director of Luxmi Group, which owns Makaibari Tea Estate in Kurseong, whole-heartedly backs FSSAI’s definition that ‘tea’ only refers to the leaves of Camellia sinensis. The clarity, he said, protects both consumers and India’s tea growers.

“At the same time, India’s long tradition of herbal and botanical infusions — tulsi, turmeric, ginger, ashwagandha and countless others — is finding a powerful global moment of its own, not as tea, but as a distinct and deeply Indian category of wellness beverages,” he said.

So, what’s in a name? That which we call rose tea, by any other name would taste as refreshing.


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