And Food 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.
Regulations 2.4.1 to 2.4.6 are the staples standards: flours (atta, maida, semolina, besan, barley) in 2.4.1 to 2.4.5 and, in 2.4.6, a long set of clauses for the grains themselves, from wheat and maize to rice, basmati, pulses, millets and fortified rice kernel. Mills, packers and traders of flour, rice and pulses can start with FSSAI registration for food manufacturers.
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 this chapter). Later notifications should be checked on fssai.gov.in. A compendium is a reference consolidation; the Gazette text prevails.
Atta must meet limits for moisture, total ash, gluten, alcoholic acidity, crude fibre, granularity and uric acid, and maida has its own, tighter set. Grains in 2.4.6 are judged on moisture, foreign matter, other edible grains, damaged grains, weevilled grains and uric acid. Rice is standardised in four types, basmati in four more, and fortified rice kernel may be sold only for industrial blending. Additives follow Appendix A and microbiology follows Appendix B.
Flours: 2.4.1 to 2.4.5
| Clause | Product | Defining feature | A few parameters exactly as printed |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2.4.1(1) | Wheat flour (atta); resultant wheat flour | exclusive milling of clean wheat; or a blend of roller-mill fractions | moisture 14.0, total ash 2.0, gluten not less than 6.0, alcoholic acidity 0.18 |
| 2.4.1(3) | Protein rich wheat flour | wheat flour mixed with solvent extracted groundnut or soya flour or whey protein, up to 15.0 per cent | moisture 13.0, protein not less than 15.0 |
| 2.4.2(1), (3), (4) | Maida; protein rich maida; durum wheat maida | refined flour with bran and germ removed | maida moisture 14.0, total ash 1.0, gluten not less than 7.5, alcoholic acidity 0.12 |
| 2.4.3 | Semolina (suji or rawa) | milled wheat, bran and germ wholly or partly removed | moisture 14.5, total ash 1.0, gluten not less than 6.0 |
| 2.4.4 | Besan | ground dehusked Bengal gram, no added colouring matter | moisture 12.0, protein not less than 20.0 |
| 2.4.5 | Pearl barley (jau), barley powder, wholemeal barley | sound clean barley | barley starch not less than 98.0 per cent in barley powder |
Clause 1 of 2.4.1 was substituted by the amendment of 21 February 2023. Atta granularity requires not less than 98 percent by mass to pass a 500 micron sieve (35 mesh); maida requires 98 percent through a 212 micron sieve (70 mesh). The granularity parameter does not apply to intermediate products that are not meant for direct consumption. Uric acid is capped at 100 mg/kg in each flour table. Several clauses, such as 2.4.1(2) and 2.4.2(2), are printed as omitted. Atta must be labelled under the Labelling and Display Regulations, 2020; see our sister article on fortified atta and rice under Schedule I.
Food grains: 2.4.6
Clause 1 sets the general rule: foodgrains for human consumption are whole or broken kernels of cereals, millets and pulses, with no argemone mexicana or kesari in any form, no added colouring matter, and insecticide residues within the Contaminants Regulations. Grains for grinding must be clean and without foreign matter. The common parameters per grain are moisture, foreign matter (extraneous matter), other edible grains, damaged grains, weevilled grains and uric acid, with defined terms in the explanation.
- Wheat (clause 2): moisture not more than 14 per cent by weight, foreign matter not more than 1 per cent by weight, deoxynivalenol (DON) not more than 1000 micrograms per kilogram; the total of foreign matter, other edible grains and damaged grains shall not exceed 12 per cent by weight.
- Maize (clause 3): moisture not more than 16.0 per cent by weight and a combined limit of 9 per cent.
- Other foodgrains (clause 15), unprocessed whole raw pulses (clause 16): moisture not more than 16 per cent; raw pulses that are not for direct human consumption carry a 3.0 per cent foreign matter limit.
- Oats, quinoa, durum wheat (clauses 17 to 19): each with moisture and defect tables, for example quinoa moisture 12.0 and saponin not more than 0.1.
- Pulses (clause 22): twelve pulses covered, from lentil and black gram to soybean and moth bean, with moisture of 14 per cent (12 for pulses without seed coat) and tables for seeds with serious and slight defects.
- Millets (clause 23): fifteen millets, from amaranthus and finger millet to sorghum and teff, with moisture not more than 13.0 for whole and dehulled grains.
- Chia seeds, triticale (clauses 25, 28): moisture and defect tables; triticale combined limit of 8.0 per cent.
Rice: clauses 24, 24A to 24C, 26 and 27
Clause 24 covers brown rice (de-husked), milled rice, parboiled brown rice and milled parboiled rice. The table prints moisture of 15.5 per cent by mass for all four, with limits for organic and inorganic extraneous matter, weevilled kernels, damaged kernels including heat-damaged and pin point damaged, immature kernels, chalky kernels and uric acid at 100 mg per kg.
Fortified rice kernel (clauses 24A to 24C) was inserted by the amendment of 21 October 2024. Clause 24A sets the rice flour used to make the kernel (moisture not more than 14.0), clause 24B the vitamin-mineral premix, and clause 24C the kernel itself, with moisture not more than 12.0 and fortificant levels for blending ratios of 1:50 and 1:100. Fortified rice kernel may be sold only for industrial purposes to make fortified rice, not loose and not to the consumer. Each package must carry the blending ratio "1:50 OR 1:100", "NOT TO BE CONSUMED AS AN INDEPENDENT PRODUCT" and "NOT TO BE CONSTRUED AS SUBSTITUTE FOR RICE OR RICE FLOUR".
Basmati rice (clause 26) must be kernels of varieties notified as Basmati under the Seeds Act, 1966, with natural fragrance, and no artificial colouring, polishing agents or artificial fragrances. Four types, brown, milled, parboiled brown and milled parboiled, have a shared table: average length 7.0 and above for brown types, average length-breadth ratio 3.5 and above, moisture 14.0, amylose content 20-25 on dry mass basis, alkali spreading value 4.0-7.0. Broken basmati is named Tibar, Dubar, Mini Dubar, Mogra or Mini Mogra, and the type must be prominent on the label. A PCR test confirms the variety if required.
Blended rice (clause 27) is a mixture of basmati and non-basmati rice that must meet clause 24 and carry a label naming each rice and its percentage.
A practical example
Sharma Flour Mills packs chakki atta. A test shows moisture of 13.5 per cent, gluten of 7.0 per cent on dry mass basis and 99 per cent passing the 500 micron sieve. Against the table these sit within the limits, and the pack carries a label under the 2020 labelling rules. If the same mill ships a bran-rich intermediate to a biscuit maker, the granularity parameter does not apply to it. For the wider overview see our post on cereal and grain standards.
Where to read more
Cereal-based products continue in our articles on corn flakes, pasta, oats and bakery products and millet flours, soy products and papad.
Need help with flour and grain standards?
Our team can compare your lab reports with the printed parameters and review the label before launch through FSSAI registration for food manufacturers.
Key takeaways
- Atta, maida, suji and besan each have a table for moisture, ash, acidity and uric acid.
- Rice has four types, basmati four more, with a PCR test for variety where needed.
- Fortified rice kernel is sold only for industrial blending and carries three printed statements.
- Pulses and millets are standardised across twelve and fifteen named grains.
- Wheat must meet a DON limit of 1000 micrograms per kilogram.
Read next
- Regulations 2.4.7 to 2.4.16: corn flakes, pasta, oats and bakery products
- Regulations 2.4.17 to 2.4.40: millet flours, soy products and papad
- Cereal and grain standards: rice and wheat
- Schedule I: fortified salt, oil, milk, atta, maida and rice
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.