Reliance Industries sued the FSSAI on October 1 over restrictions on marketing Campa products as energy drinks. The company challenged a June 30 order that stopped such labelling. Reliance said, "Such actions have caused and are causing substantial disruption to the Petitioner's business operations and adversely affect its market presence."
Billionaire Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries has sued the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) over restrictions preventing the company from marketing its Campa-brand products as "energy drinks", making it the latest beverage maker to challenge the food safety regulator's labelling crackdown.
Reuters reported on Tuesday, citing court documents that have not been made public, that the company filed a writ petition on October 1 challenging a June 30 FSSAI order barring manufacturers of high-caffeine beverages from marketing their products as "energy drinks".
Reliance joins PepsiCo and Monster Beverage, which sued the food safety regulator last week over its crackdown. Austria's Red Bull was granted temporary relief allowing the company to continue using the label.
According to the petition, state authorities have seized Reliance's stock and also ordered e-commerce platforms to delist the products. The company is now seeking to have the FSSAI order quashed.
In a filing, Reliance Consumer Products Ltd, the beverages arm of Reliance, said, "Such actions have caused and are causing substantial disruption to the Petitioner's business operations and adversely affect its market presence and commercial goodwill."