Hemp Seed explained: this guide covers what it means, who it applies to, the step-by-step process, documents required, fees, due dates and penalties in India — so you can stay compliant with confidence and avoid costly mistakes.
Three short chapters close the product standards. Regulation 2.14 sets out the gluten category: foods made from rice, millets, ragi, pulses or legumes that may be labelled by a gluten threshold. Chapter 2.15 was omitted on 4 March 2021. Regulation 2.16 allows hemp seed, hemp seed oil and hemp seed flour to be sold as food within strict limits on THC, cannabidiol and labelling. Packers of gluten-category foods and hemp seed products can start with FSSAI compliance support.
This article reads the text as amended up to 21 October 2024 (FSSAI chapter compendium consolidated to amendment 83; the amendment of 10 July 2025 does not change these chapters). Later notifications should be checked on fssai.gov.in. A compendium is a reference consolidation; the Gazette text prevails.
A food in the gluten category is made of ingredients containing rice, millets, ragi, pulses or legumes and, when analysed, must show gluten below 20 mg/kg by the OECD or AOAC method. Hemp seed may be sold as food only if total THC is not more than 5.0 mg/kg (10.0 for oil, 0.2 for beverages), CBD not more than 75 mg/kg, and the label avoids cannabis words and imagery. Hemp food for infants up to 24 months may not be made, imported or sold.
Regulation 2.14: the gluten category
Regulation 2.14 has four live clauses. This article calls the group "the gluten category".
- Composition. Foods in the category consist of or are made of one or more ingredients containing rice, millets, ragi, pulses or legumes.
- Label declaration. The product bears the label declaration referred to in sub-regulation 2.4.5 (50) of the Packaging and Labelling Regulations, 2011.
- Foods that are suitable by nature. A food that, by its nature, suits a diet with no gluten may not be named "special dietary", "special dietetic" or an equivalent term. It may carry a label statement that the food is by its nature within the category, provided that it complies with the essential composition provision in clause (4) and the statement does not mislead the consumer. This clause was inserted by amendment.
- The threshold. For labelling a product in the category, the gluten level, when the product is analysed, must be below 20 mg/kg, as per the method declared by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development or the Association of Official Agricultural Chemists.
The last printed clause is marked omitted. The threshold is a laboratory parameter, so a brand should keep the analysis report for each batch. For the label statements on gluten under the labelling regulations, see our sister article on Schedule II, part 2 and the allergen rules in the date-marking and allergens article of that series.
Chapter 2.15: omitted
Chapter 2.15, on food specially processed to reduce gluten content to a level of 20-100 mg/kg, was omitted by the notification dated 04.03.2021 (amendment number 73). It therefore sets no requirement today, and a product cannot rely on it. Only the clause (4) threshold of 2.14 applies to labelling by gluten level.
Regulation 2.16: hemp seeds and seed products
What is covered. Hemp seed means the hulled, non-viable seeds obtained from Cannabis sativa or other indigenous Cannabis species. Hulled seeds have the outer coat removed; non-viable seeds are unable to germinate; "seeds" includes a part of a seed. Cultivation of Cannabis for hemp seed in India must comply with the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985 and its rules. Hemp seed, hemp seed oil and hemp seed flour may be sold as food or used as an ingredient in a food for sale if they meet the standards below.
| Product | Parameters exactly as printed |
|---|---|
| Hemp seed | moisture, percent m/m, 7.0 maximum; protein (N x 6.25) 30.0 minimum; fat 45.0 minimum; ash 6.0 maximum; total THC 5.0 mg/kg maximum |
| Oil extracted from hemp seeds | FFA (expressed as oleic acid) 0.50 percent m/m maximum; peroxide value 10.0 mEq/kg maximum; total THC 10.0 mg/kg maximum |
| Hemp seed flour | total THC 5.0 mg/kg maximum |
Hemp seed flour is the solid product after seeds are milled to a powder, with or without extraction of oil. Flour made after pressing the seed to extract oil must be labelled "Deoiled hemp seed flour". Total THC means the total amount of delta 9-tetrahydrocannabinol and delta 9-tetrahydrocannabinolic acid.
Other limits. The total THC may not exceed 0.2 mg/kg in any beverage made from hemp seeds, and any other food for sale consisting of hemp seed or seed products may not exceed 5 mg/kg. Cannabidiol (CBD) in any such food may not exceed 75 mg/kg. Cannabinoids may only be present naturally in or on the seeds.
Labelling and presentation.
- The food may not be labelled or presented in a way that expressly or by implication suggests a psychoactive effect.
- The label may not include a nutrient content claim or a health claim about cannabidiol, an image or representation of any part of the Cannabis plant other than the seed (including the leaf), or the words "cannabis", "marijuana" or words of similar meaning.
- The label may include the word "Hemp".
Infants. No person shall manufacture, import or sell any food product containing hemp seed or seed products intended for administration to infants up to the age of 24 months. For infant foods generally, see our sister article on the definitions in the Foods for Infant Nutrition Regulations.
A practical example
Himalayan Seeds sells hulled hemp seeds, cold-pressed oil and a deoiled flour. Each batch report shows total THC against 5.0 mg/kg for seed and flour and 10.0 mg/kg for oil, FFA and peroxide value for the oil, and protein, fat, moisture and ash for the seed. The pack shows the word "Hemp" and a picture of the seed only, with no leaf image, and the flour pack says "Deoiled hemp seed flour". A ready-to-drink hemp beverage would have to stay at or below 0.2 mg/kg total THC. For the broader approval route for novel ingredients see our article on proprietary food under regulation 2.12.
Need help with special food standards?
Our team can check a gluten-category label or a hemp product against the printed limits and the label rules. Start with FSSAI compliance support. The preceding chapter, on radiation processing, is in our article on regulation 2.13.
Key takeaways
- The gluten category threshold is below 20 mg/kg when the product is analysed.
- Chapter 2.15 was omitted on 4 March 2021 and sets no requirement.
- Hemp seed and flour allow total THC of 5.0 mg/kg at most; oil 10.0; beverages 0.2.
- CBD in hemp food may not exceed 75 mg/kg.
- No hemp food may be made, imported or sold for infants up to 24 months.
Read next
- Regulation 2.13: radiation processing of food
- Regulation 3.1: general conditions for food additives
- Regulation 2.12: proprietary food
- Regulations 1.1 and 1.2: definitions and structure
Disclaimer: Based on the Food Safety and Standards (Food Products Standards and Food Additives) Regulations, 2011 as consolidated in FSSAI's chapter-wise compendium (to amendment 83 of 21 October 2024) and the First Amendment Regulations, 2025, as consulted on fssai.gov.in on 2-3 October 2026. Later notifications and the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 provisions referred to should be checked. This article is general information, not legal advice; check the official text before acting.