Packaging safety study may up compliance norms for Zomato, Swiggy

As rising temperatures become the new normal and changing lifestyles drive a surge in food delivery, the Centre plans to launch a major scientific study to assess whether the plastic containers, pouches and bags used to pack items such as curries, gravies and rice remain safe in extreme Indian weather conditions, two people said.

- Dhirendra Kumar

The study to be conducted by the consumer affairs ministry's standardization arm—the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS)—will help determine if existing packaging safety limits are still effective amid higher ambient heat, longer transport durations and shifting storage patterns caused by climate change.

It will examine how chemicals from various types of plastic packaging including polyethylene terephthalate (PET), recycled-PET, polycarbonate, and laminated films leach into food when exposed to intense heat and humidity, one person said. The findings will determine if the Food Safety and Standards (Packaging) Regulations, 2018, need to be revised, this person added.

The move assumes significance for India's $22.48 billion plastic packaging market and the $48 billion food delivery market.