Consignments of black olives, a few brands of olive oil, a popular Swiss chocolate brand, a number of gluten-free products, nachos, Southeast Asian sauces and noodles, certain wines, beer and scotch whisky have either been rejected or stalled at various ports causing massive financial loss. If this continues, Delhi's dreams of becoming the gourmet capital may soon end, say chefs.
An FSSAI notification in July on alcoholic beverages, for instance, mandates that except for single ingredient products, all products are required to display the list of ingredients on their label, they also have to mention the manufacturing and expiry date for each product. This is often not the norm in the countries from where alcohol is imported. A similar notification was also released for canola or rapeseed oil. Restaurant owners claim that because of such guidelines, chefs have to opt for 'inferior-quality' ingredients available locally while their imports continue to rot at ports.
Between January 2014 and June 2014, as many as 165 imported consignments were rejected at the Delhi airport mainly due to "non rectifiable labelling defects" and "non submission of product approval certificate". In total 981 consignments were rejected in ports across the country with a majority due to labelling issues, according to FSSAI's data. FSSAI officials, however, refused to comment. "We are going by our notifications. All details are on the website," said B G Pandian, assistant director (imports) at FSSAI.
Meanwhile, gourmet outlets say import delays are bad news ahead of the festive season. "The worst is the restriction on Swiss chocolate as it is in huge demand during the festive season. Gluten-free products are also becoming popular in India because of health reasons but now most of them have been stopped. For olive oil and sauces, we usually suggest alternatives," said an employee of Nature's Basket, a grocery store that stocks exotic ingredients and foods. Citing the guidelines, he said that the manufacturing date, expiry date and maximum retail price of a product should be mentioned by the manufacturer on its label. A label pasted by the importer won't help, he added.
At the INA market, many of these products were unavailable. "When they are not being imported, what can we do? We can only offer alternatives," said Gulshan Luthra, a shopkeeper.
A chef at a leading eatery serving European cuisine revealed that his import agents for artisan cheese and chocolates had stopped supply. Another chef said that a popular brand of dips and sauces had also stopped operation because of the guidelines. "Companies are expected to reveal trade secrets in the name of safety. They would rather shut shop than invest in lawyers to fight their cases or print India-specific labels. Ironically, most of them are reputed suppliers, meeting some of most stringent guidelines across the world," he added.
These regulations will impact restaurants priding themselves on ingredient-centric recipes, said chef Shamsul Wahid of Smoke House Deli. "We will have to switch to domestic products or give up specialty dishes. If certain ingredients are made available, they would come at a premium price, thus impacting costs," he affirmed. Chef Saby Gorai, who runs a consultancy for boutique restaurants, said: "Shortage of products will give rise to black-marketing". He further said that by telling top-quality manufacturers their products were not 'fit for India', authorities were "reversing all progress made in the dining scene."
While standalone restaurants feel the immediate pinch, five-star hotels and resorts aren't immune either. A chef at a luxury resort said that they have a buffer stock now, but the coming season might make them cut a sorry figure. "Imported salmon, foie gras and lamb chops are almost on every menu. We would have no option but to deny these delicacies to diners. Gourmet dining outlets rely on top-quality imported ingredients," he said.
Popular for imported beer from various parts of the world, Beer Cafe, has not been able to serve German and Belgian beer because of the ban. They are now worried that the much awaited Oktober fest to be held at the cafe will be impacted. Zoravar Kalra of Farzi Cafe, which specializes in fusion cuisine, stressed such rigid policies shouldn't make India appear like a 'difficult' place to do business at.
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