Have you noticed red or green dots on food packaging? What do they signify? A green dot in the middle of a square means the food item in the package is vegetarian, while a red dot is indicative of non-vegetarian food. But how do we identify vegan foods i.e. plant-based foods? The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) recently launched a logo to help consumers identify vegan foods. What does it look like? Why is it essential? Let’s find out.
The new logo
For the first time ever, the FSSAI has come up with a logo for vegan foods. The new logo is part of the country’s apex food regulators first draft rules for vegan food products. The FSSAI which functions under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has outlined the items that come under the vegan food category. Henceforth, just like the different coloured logos help identify veg and non-veg foods, vegan foods will sport a new Logo.
The new logo has the letter V in inscribed in the middle of a white square box with green colour a small plant on top of it and the word ‘Vegan” at the bottom. The square box also has a green outline. According to an FSSAI statement, the green colour and the leaf indicate the ingredient/product is of plant origin. The letter V identifies the product as Vegan.
What is veganism?
Veganism is the practice of avoiding animal products, especially in one’s diet. It seeks to exclude all forms of exploitation of and cruelty to animals for food and fibre. Those who adopt this philosophy as a way of life are called vegans. They not only avoid animal foods such as meat, fish, milk and other dairy items, eggs and honey, and animal-derived products such as leather, but also refuse to patronise zoos and circuses that use animals for entertainment. The term ‘vegan’ was coined by Donald Watson of Britain in 1944 to describe non-dairy vegetarians.
If you have been wondering what constitutes a vegan diet, it is a completely plant-based diet. With veganism gaining momentum, there are many people who are keen on avoiding animal products. There are also those who are allergic to dairy products. To cater to the needs of such people, plant-based beverages and plant-based meat are available in the market. The vegan logo is expected to help them make informed food choices.
The FSSAI notification defines vegan foods as “those foods or food ingredients that do not make use of any ingredients, additives and processing aids of animal origin including milk and milk products, fish, poultry, meat, egg or egg products, honey bee or honey products, materials of insect origin like silk, dyes, bone char used in sugar bleaching among others.” Besides, “food products or ingredients to be called vegan shall not have involved animal testing for evaluating the safety of the final product or ingredient and shall not contain any animal-derived GMOs (genetically modified organisms)”.
Who designed the logo?
The new vegan logo has been designed by Kruti Manish Rathore of Mount Caramel College, Bengaluru who is pursuing Masters in Food Science and Nutrition. Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya introduced the logo through a Twitter post on September 20.
Picture Credit : Google
