The region's overall food safety performance remains superior due to much lower non-conformance rates of 13.2 percent compared to 27.5 percent nationally.
Published Aug 25, 2025 | 7:00 AM ⚊ Updated Aug 25, 2025 | 7:00 AM
Food Safety officials at Karachi Bakery store at Moazzam Jahi Market area in Hyderabad (Supplied)
Synopsis: According to government data, southern states recorded a non-conformance rate of 13.2 percent in food safety testing between 2020-21 and 2024-25, compared to the national average of 27.5 percent. Their 57 percent enforcement rate is slightly below the national average of 59 percent, but the region’s overall food safety performance remains superior due to much lower non-conformance rates.
The five southern states recorded a non-conformance rate of 13.2 percent in food safety testing between 2020-21 and 2024-25, compared to the national average of 27.5 percent, according to enforcement data presented in Parliament.
With a 57 percent enforcement rate, South Indian states penalised 18,501 out of 32,465 non-conforming food safety cases over five years, translating to three out of every five violations being acted upon, revealed data tabled in Lok Sabha by Minister of State in the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare Prataprao Jadhav.
The 57 percent enforcement rate is slightly below the national average of 59 percent, but the region’s overall food safety performance remains superior due to much lower non-conformance rates of 13.2 percent compared to 27.5 percent nationally.
Non-conforming cases refer to food samples that fail to meet the safety and quality parameters established by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI).
These violations can range from the presence of harmful contaminants, excessive pesticide residues and microbial contamination to adulteration with cheaper or prohibited substances, incorrect labelling and substandard nutritional content.
When food safety officers collect samples from markets, restaurants, or manufacturing units, they are sent to designated laboratories for testing. Samples that don’t comply with prescribed standards under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, are classified as non-conforming. Such cases can lead to penalties including fines, product recalls, license suspension or cancellation, and, in severe cases, criminal prosecution of food business operators.
In South India, Tamil Nadu recorded the highest number of non-conforming cases with 19,622 violations, followed by Kerala with 6,246 cases, Telangana with 2,642 cases, Andhra Pradesh with 2,216 cases, and Karnataka with 1,739 cases. Collectively, the five southern states registered 32,465 non-conforming cases over five years.
The data, tabled by Jadhav, revealed that, across India, approximately one in four food samples tested failed to meet prescribed safety and quality standards over the five years. However, enforcement remains a significant challenge, with only 59 percent of violations resulting in penalties nationwide.
The five southern states — Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Telangana — collectively analysed 47,540 samples in 2024-25, representing nearly a quarter of all food safety testing conducted across India despite having only 20 percent of the country’s population.
Karnataka stands out as the national quality champion, with only 5.9 percent of food samples failing safety standards over the five years — translating to roughly one in 17 samples being found non-conforming. The state’s consistent performance includes a remarkable 2021-22, when just 2.6 percent of samples failed testing, demonstrating exceptional control over food safety standards.
Andhra Pradesh demonstrated exceptional enforcement capabilities, with 73.5 percent of non-conforming cases resulting in penalties — the highest conversion rate among major states. The state’s enforcement peaked in 2021-22 when 90.8 percent of violations led to punitive action, significantly above the national average.
This strong enforcement approach has contributed to improving compliance, with the state’s non-conformance rate dropping from 16.4 percent in 2020-21 to 8.6 percent in 2024-25.
Tamil Nadu, despite handling the highest testing volume in South India with 18,071 samples in 2024-25, has shown dramatic improvement. The state reduced its non-conformance rate from a concerning 32.8 percent in 2022-23 to 12.4 percent in 2024-25, demonstrating effective corrective measures at scale. The state imposed 11,692 penalties over the five years, showing commitment to enforcement despite high violation numbers.
Telangana recorded the most aggressive capacity expansion, increasing its testing volume by 274 percent from 894 samples in 2020-21 to 3,347 samples in 2024-25 — the highest growth rate among all states analysed.
The state’s non-conformance rate improved to 9.7 percent in the latest year, its best performance in the five years, though enforcement remains moderate, with 32 percent of violations penalised.
Kerala presents mixed results despite having the region’s second-highest testing capacity with 10,767 samples in 2024-25. While the state maintains strong enforcement with 66.5 percent of violations penalised in the latest year, its non-conformance rate has worsened from 12.1 percent to 15.2 percent in recent years, indicating emerging quality control challenges.
At the national level, India has nearly doubled its food safety testing infrastructure from 105,408 samples in 2020-21 to 2,03,390 samples in 2024-25, representing a 93 percent increase in monitoring capacity. However, this expansion has revealed concerning patterns of food safety violations across different regions.
Uttar Pradesh continues to face a food safety crisis, with 54.3 percent of samples failing standards in 2024-25 — meaning one in two food items tested were found non-conforming.
Despite accounting for 15 percent of national testing with 30,380 samples, the state recorded 16,500 non-conforming cases, representing 30 percent of all failures nationwide. The state imposed 14,920 penalties, indicating serious enforcement efforts, yet the high failure rates persist.
Rajasthan recorded the second-highest non-conformance rate at 27.4 percent with 3,788 failures out of 13,840 samples tested in 2024-25. The state imposed 3,114 penalties, achieving an 82 percent conversion rate that demonstrates strong enforcement capabilities despite quality control challenges.
Maharashtra, despite being an industrial powerhouse, saw 23.1 percent of samples fail testing with 1,250 failures out of 5,403 samples, while Haryana recorded a 22.4 percent failure rate with 500 non-conforming samples out of 2,233 tested.
In stark contrast, several smaller states and union territories achieved remarkable performance. Sikkim maintained a perfect record with zero non-conforming samples out of 254 tested, while Dadra and Nagar Haveli recorded zero failures from 56 samples tested. Puducherry also maintained zero failures from 173 samples, demonstrating that effective food safety management is achievable with proper systems.
The enforcement data shows improvement across the country, with penalty conversion rates rising from 52 percent in 2020-21 to 66 percent in 2024-25. This indicates regulatory authorities are taking stricter action against violations, though significant gaps remain between detection and punishment in many states.
West Bengal emerged as a notable performer in 2024-25, dramatically expanding its testing capacity to 14,502 samples while maintaining a relatively low non-conformance rate of 8.4 percent. The state’s enforcement efficiency improved significantly, with 672 penalties imposed against 1,217 violations, achieving a 55 percent conversion rate.
Bihar showed surprising improvement in food safety standards with only 4.3 percent of samples failing testing in 2024-25, among the lowest rates nationally. However, the state’s penalty conversion rate remained low at just 20 percent, indicating weak enforcement mechanisms despite good quality control.
The northeastern states generally performed well, with Arunachal Pradesh recording just 7.2 percent non-conformance and Assam maintaining 13.7 percent failure rates. These states, however, tested relatively smaller sample sizes compared to the major states.
Addressing the capacity and training challenges, Jadhav informed Parliament that FSSAI regularly reviews and engages with all States and union territories to expedite filling up of the vacant posts against the sanctioned strength.
“Induction Training Programmes for Regulatory Officers (Food Safety Officers and Designated Officers) are conducted as and when they are recruited by the States/UTs. Refresher and need-based training programmes are also conducted for regulatory officials from time to time, based on requisitions received from the respective States/UTs. FSSAI conducts specialised training programmes for laboratory personnel/food analysts to ensure continuous upgradation of technical skills. In July 2017, FSSAI launched the Food Safety Training and Certification (FoSTaC) programme to train food handlers on good hygiene and manufacturing practices. So far, more than 25.70 lakh food handlers have been trained across the country,” he said.
(Edited by Muhammed Fazil.)
