Top News

If you’re someone who watches what you eat, the fine print on your food packet might be more important than you think. Labels don’t just list ingredients, they define what a product legally is and isn’t. This importance of labelling came to the fore after a recent decision by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), which prohibited the use of the term “ORS” or “Oral Rehydration Salts” on any food product unless it strictly adheres to World Health Organization (WHO) standards.

According to UNICEF (United Nations Children’s Fund), ORS is a mixture of salt and sugar that is dissolved in clean water to treat dehydration caused by severe diarrhoea, heat stroke, or any other illnesses that result in loss of fluid.

In its official statement, the FSSAI said, “The use of the term ‘ORS’ in the trademarked name or in the naming of any food product otherwise, whether fruit-based, non-carbonated, or ready-to-drink beverages, even when accompanied by a prefix or suffix, constitutes a violation of the provisions of the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 and the regulations made thereunder.”

But this is not the only case—in India, food names like “ice cream,” “fruit juice,” or “ORS” aren’t interchangeable with lookalikes. The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) lays down exact standards for when a product can use those terms. These can have health implications as well, marking the difference between healthy nutrients and empty calories.

Here is a look at some labelling differences that one may come across in their daily life.

Crème vs Cream

What looks like a spelling quirk actually signals a key difference. Under FSSAI regulations“cream” is a milk product with at least 25 per cent milk fat, and must come from milk, not vegetable oil. “Cream, including sterilised cream, means the product of cow or buffalo milk or a combination thereof. It shall be free from starch and other ingredients foreign to milk,” according to the 2011 regulations.

On the other hand, “crème” is often a marketing term used for products with non-dairy fat substitutes. That’s why your childhood “crème biscuits” contain vegetable oil-based filling, not real dairy cream. Using the wrong label here isn’t just misleading, it’s illegal under the 2011 Food Product Standardswhich define milk products as containing only milk-derived ingredients.

Ice cream vs Frozen dessert

If you thought they were the same, think again. As per Regulation 2.1.7 of FSSAI, “ice cream” must be made from milk fat— “Ice Cream, Kulfi, Chocolate Ice Cream or Softy Ice Cream (hereafter referred to as the said product) means the product obtained by freezing a pasteurized mix prepared from milk and /or other products derived from milk,” it says.

On the other hand, “frozen dessert” can use vegetable oils and fats instead. “Frozen dessert / Frozen confection (hereafter referred to as the said product) means the product obtained by freezing a pasteurised mix prepared with milk fat and/or edible vegetable oils and fat,” according to the rules.

Both may taste similar, but they belong to entirely different categories – one is dairy-based, the other is plant-fat-based. FSSAI even mandates that frozen desserts clearly carry the label “Frozen Dessert/Frozen Confection,” not “ice cream.” This clarity helps consumers choose based on dietary preference or lactose intolerance.

Fruit juice vs Fruit beverage

Fruit drinks are another classic labelling trap. If the pack says “juice,” the product must contain 100 per cent fruit-derived content, either from concentrate or fresh pulp.

But “fruit beverages,” “nectars,” or “drinks” usually have less than 10–20 pc fruit, topped up with sugar, water, and preservatives. The two can sit side by side on a supermarket shelf, but nutritionally they’re worlds apart. FSSAI’s labelling norms prevent beverage companies from passing off sugary drinks as juice.

This story is done in collaboration with First Checkwhich is the health journalism vertical of DataLEADS.