Chocolate and 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.
Regulation 2.7 covers eight confectionery and cocoa products: sugar-boiled confectionery, lozenges, chewing and bubble gum, chocolate, ice lollies or edible ices, dry mixtures of cocoa and sugars, cocoa powder, and cocoa mass and cocoa cake. The chocolate standard is the longest, with ten printed types and a vegetable-fat condition that drives a bold label statement. Confectionery makers 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.
Each product has a short parameter table. Chocolate may contain vegetable fats other than cocoa butter up to 5 per cent of the finished product, and then must carry a bold declaration. Dark chocolate has a minimum of total cocoa solids on a dry matter basis, and the other types have a table of fat, cocoa solids and milk solids. Where an artificial sweetener is added, the label rules of the labelling regulations apply. Additives follow Appendix A.
Sugar-boiled confectionery, lozenges and gum: 2.7.1 to 2.7.3
Sugar boiled confectionery (2.7.1) is a processed composite food made from sugar, with or without doctoring agents such as cream of tartar, by boiling, whether panned or not. It is sold as hard boiled sugar confectionery, pan goods, toffee, milk toffee, modified toffee, lacto-bon-bon and under other names, with or without a centre filling or coating of sugar or chocolate. The clause lists 26 permitted ingredient groups, including sweetening agents, milk products, edible molasses, malt extract, food grade shellac not exceeding 0.4 per cent by weight and isomaltulose at 50 per cent (max) of the total sugars. Standards include ash sulphated (on a salt-excluded basis) not more than 2.5 per cent by weight and ash insoluble in dilute hydrochloric acid not more than 0.2 per cent, with higher limits (3 per cent and 0.4 per cent) where spices are used as centre filling. Milk toffee needs total protein (N x 6.25) not less than 3 per cent and fat not less than 4 per cent, on dry basis, and butter toffee fat not less than 4 per cent.
Lozenges (2.7.2) are made mainly from pulverised or icing sugar with binders such as edible gums, gelatine, liquid glucose or dextrin, generally by cold mixing. The standards are sucrose content not less than 85.0 per cent by weight, ash sulphated not more than 3.0 per cent and ash insoluble in dilute hydrochloric acid not more than 0.2 per cent. If only a permitted artificial sweetener is used, the sucrose requirement does not apply.
Chewing gum and bubble gum (2.7.3) are made from natural or synthetic gum base, cane sugar and liquid glucose. The table prints gum not less than 12.5 per cent for chewing gum and 14.0 per cent for bubble gum, moisture not more than 3.5 per cent for both, and sucrose not more than 70.0 and 60.0 per cent. Fourteen gum base sources are listed, from babul and khair to polyvinyl acetate and agar.
Chocolate: 2.7.4
Chocolate is a homogeneous product made from cocoa materials such as cocoa nib, cocoa mass, press cake and cocoa powder, with or without sugars, cocoa butter and milk solids. Vegetable fats other than cocoa butter may not exceed 5 per cent of the finished product, after deduction of the weight of other added edible foodstuffs, and the minimum cocoa materials may not be reduced. Those vegetable fats must be non-lauric, rich in symmetrical monounsaturated triglycerides, miscible with cocoa butter in any proportion, and obtained by refining or fractionation, which excludes enzymatic modification of the triglyceride structure (as substituted by amendment).
| Type | Defining feature as printed |
|---|---|
| Milk chocolate; milk covering chocolate | cocoa materials with sugar, milk solids and cocoa butter; the covering type suits coating |
| Plain chocolate; plain covering chocolate | cocoa materials with sugar and cocoa butter; dark chocolate needs, on a dry matter basis, not less than 35 per cent total cocoa solids, of which not less than 18 per cent cocoa butter and not less than 14 per cent non-fat cocoa solids |
| Blended chocolate | a blend of milk and plain chocolate |
| White chocolate | cocoa butter, milk solids including milk fat and sugar |
| Filled chocolate | chocolate coating not less than 25 per cent of the total mass |
| Composite chocolate | at least 60 per cent chocolate by weight, with at least 10 per cent wholesome substances such as fruits and nuts |
| Praline | single mouthful, chocolate component not less than 25 per cent of weight |
| Couverture chocolate | on a dry matter basis not less than 35 per cent total cocoa solids, of which not less than 31 per cent cocoa butter and not less than 2.5 per cent non-fat cocoa solids |
The characteristics table prints, for milk, milk covering, plain, plain covering, white and blended chocolate, total fat (dry basis) of not less than 25 per cent by weight for all, milk fat not less than 2 for the milk and white types, cocoa solids (dry, non-fat basis) of 2.5 for milk chocolate and 12 for plain chocolate, milk solids of 10.5 for milk and white chocolate, and acid insoluble ash not more than 0.2 for all. Chocolate that contains vegetable fats other than cocoa butter must carry a bold declaration: "CONTAINS COCOA BUTTER EQUIVALENT / VEGETABLE FAT IN ADDITION TO COCOA BUTTER". Artificial sweeteners listed in Appendix A may be used with the label declarations the labelling regulations require. Our post on FSSAI compliance for chocolate and confectionery covers the business view.
Ice lollies, cocoa mixes and cocoa products: 2.7.5 to 2.7.8
- Ice lollies or edible ices and ice candy (2.7.5): frozen products that may contain sugar, fruit, juices, cocoa, citric acid and permitted flavours and colours, with stabilisers and emulsifiers not exceeding 0.5 per cent by weight and no artificial sweetener. Ice candy needs total sugars, expressed as sucrose, of not less than 10.0 percent. Milk-based ices are in our article on ice cream and frozen desserts.
- Dry mixtures of cocoa and sugars (2.7.6): moisture not more than 7 per cent by mass; a table of names, such as sweetened cocoa, drinking chocolate and sweetened cocoa-flavoured mix, by cocoa powder content and cocoa butter content. Chocolate powder contains not less than 32 per cent wt/wt cocoa powder (29 per cent on a dry matter basis).
- Cocoa powder (2.7.7): powder from cocoa press cake or cocoa mass of well-fermented, roasted beans. Cocoa powder, fat reduced (medium fat) and highly fat reduced (low fat) cocoa powder each have moisture not more than 7.0, acid insoluble ash not more than 1.0 and crude fibre not more than 7.0, and differ in cocoa butter content.
- Cocoa mass and cocoa cake (2.7.8): cocoa mass has moisture not more than 10.0, cocoa shell and germ not more than 5.0 and cocoa butter of 47.0 to 60.0.
Beans themselves are in our article on cocoa beans, arecanut and edible fungi, and cocoa butter in vanaspati, margarine and edible fats.
A practical example
Silverleaf Chocolates sells a dark bar with a cocoa butter equivalent. The vegetable fat other than cocoa butter is held within 5 per cent of the finished product, the minimum cocoa materials are kept, and the front panel carries the bold statement for cocoa butter equivalent. If the bar is sold as dark chocolate, the 35, 18 and 14 per cent dry matter figures are the benchmark. The wider overview is in our post on sweets and namkeen standards.
Need help with confectionery standards?
Our team can compare your formulation with the type definitions and prepare the label and licence application through FSSAI registration for food manufacturers.
Key takeaways
- Chocolate has ten printed types and a 5 per cent cap on vegetable fats other than cocoa butter.
- A bold declaration is needed where cocoa butter equivalent or vegetable fat is added.
- Dark chocolate and couverture each have printed minimums of cocoa solids on a dry matter basis.
- Lozenges need sucrose of not less than 85.0 per cent unless only an artificial sweetener is used.
- Cocoa powder, cocoa mass and cocoa cake each have a short parameter table.
Read next
- Regulations 2.3.48 to 2.3.65: coconut milk, cocoa beans, arecanut and edible fungi
- Regulation 2.8: sugar, honey, jaggery and sweeteners
- Sweets and namkeen standards
- FSSAI compliance for chocolate and confectionery
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.