All foods approved as vegan and sold in India will be required to carry a standardised logo on-pack, effective from 1 July 2027.

The initiative aims to create a unified, nationally recognised identity for products that have been approved as vegan – meaning they are entirely free from animal-derived ingredients – by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI).

When a product has been approved as vegan by the FSSAI, it must display the required vegan logo from the date of the regulation becoming effective, aiming to support consumers in clearly identifying vegan-friendly products on-shelf.

This latest development is an amendment to the FSSAI’s Vegan Food Regulation of 2022, formalising the standardised logo and setting out clear specifications around its exact dimensions and colours, as well as confirming the exact deadline for implementation.

The logo features a green square symbol containing a green ‘V,’ the word ‘VEGAN’ displayed in upper-case below, and a sprouting leaf motif above the ‘V’.

Monita Gahlot, dietician at All India Institute of Medical Sciences, said the logo will “reduce confusion in food choice and labelling claims,” helping consumers to differentiate products that are vegetarian – free from meat, but still containing certain animal ingredients such as dairy and egg – from those that are entirely plant-based.

She told the Times of India that consumers often spend “considerable time scrutinising ingredients lists” to identify whether a product is of plant origin.