Dabur India has approached the Delhi High Court challenging the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India's (FSSAI) directive restricting the use of claims such as "100% Pure", "100% Natural", "100% Purity Guaranteed" and "100% Organic" on food products. The company sought an urgent hearing, with Senior Advocate Sandeep Sethi requesting immediate listing before a bench comprising Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya and Justice Tejas Karia. The court accepted the request and agreed to hear the matter on an urgent basis.

The legal challenge follows FSSAI's direction asking Dabur to stop selling certain food products carrying absolute "100%" claims. The regulator maintains that such expressions are ambiguous, difficult to substantiate and capable of misleading consumers by implying absolute purity or superiority. Products covered by the directive include honey, cow ghee, apple cider vinegar, virgin coconut oil, sesame oil, coconut water and coconut milk.

FSSAI's action is part of a broader regulatory effort to tighten food labelling and advertising standards. In May 2025, the food regulator advised food business operators to avoid using "100%" claims on labels, packaging and promotional material, stating that the expression is not defined under existing food safety regulations. Under the Food Safety and Standards (Advertising and Claims) Regulations, 2018, all product claims must be truthful, meaningful, unambiguous and not misleading to consumers.

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The regulator has argued that pairing the term "100%" with words such as "pure" or "natural" may create the impression that competing products are inferior or fail to meet comparable standards. Regulatory scrutiny has also extended beyond Dabur. In June, the Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) imposed penalties of Rs 1 lakh each on Storia Foods and Mrs Bectors for allegedly making misleading "100%" claims and directed both companies to remove such claims from their product packaging, websites and digital platforms.

The outcome of Dabur's petition is expected to have wider implications for India's packaged food industry, where absolute quality and purity claims have become common marketing tools. While the company has indicated that it is gradually removing "100%" claims from its packaging and promotional material, it has also chosen to challenge the regulator's action through legal channels. The High Court's decision is likely to provide greater clarity on the regulatory limits of marketing language and the extent to which food manufacturers can use absolute claims in product branding.

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