No Added 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 6 of the Advertising and Claims Regulations, 2018 governs claims that something has not been added to a food: no added sugars, no added sodium salts (including "no added salt") and no added additives. Each claim may be made only if every printed condition is met.
The text is read as amended up to 13 December 2022 (FSSAI Compendium Version IV dated 14.12.2022). FSSAI compendia are reference consolidations and the Gazette text prevails. Later notifications should be checked on fssai.gov.in. Brands considering such a claim can start with FSSAI label compliance.
A claim of non-addition of sugars needs four conditions: no sugars of any type added, no ingredients containing sugars, no sugar-substitute ingredients, and no increase in the food's own sugars by other means. Where sugars are naturally present, the label must also say 'CONTAINS NATURALLY OCCURRING SUGARS'. Claims of no added salt and no added additives have their own conditions.
What a non-addition claim is
Regulation 2(1)(m) defines it: a claim that an ingredient or additive has not been added to a food, directly or indirectly, where the ingredient or additive is one whose presence or addition is permitted and which consumers would normally expect to find in the food. See our article on the definitions. Regulation 6 has four sub-regulations, one each for sugars, sodium salts and additives, and one for additional conditions.
6(1): non-addition of sugars
Claims regarding non-addition of sugars may be made if the following conditions are met.
| Condition | Text, in short | Printed examples |
|---|---|---|
| (i) | no sugars of any type have been added to the food | sucrose, glucose, honey, molasses, corn syrup |
| (ii) | the food contains no ingredients that contain sugars as an ingredient | jams, jellies, sweetened chocolate, sweetened fruit pieces |
| (iii) | the food contains no ingredients containing sugars that substitute for added sugars | non-reconstituted concentrated fruit juice, dried fruit paste |
| (iv) | the sugars content of the food itself has not been increased above the amount contributed by the ingredients by some other means | the use of enzymes to hydrolyse starches to release sugars |
Clause (b) adds that a non-addition of sugars claim may also be made where sugars are naturally present in the food, and in that case "the following indication shall also appear on the label": 'CONTAINS NATURALLY OCCURRING SUGARS'.
"Sugars" in regulation 2(1)(o) means all monosaccharides and disaccharides. For the separate condition for a claim about the sugar level (Schedule I, serial 10), see our article on nutrition claims.
6(2): non-addition of sodium salts
This sub-regulation was substituted by amendment. Claims regarding non-addition of sodium salts, "including 'no added salt'", may be made if:
- (a) the food contains no added sodium salts, including but not limited to sodium chloride and sodium tripolyphosphate;
- (b) the food contains no ingredients that contain added sodium salts, including but not limited to sauces, pickles, pepperoni, soya sauce, salted fish and fish sauce; and
- (c) the food contains no ingredients that contain sodium salts used to substitute for added salt, including but not limited to seaweed.
6(3): non-addition of additives
Also substituted by amendment. "Save as otherwise provided in any other regulations", claims regarding the non-addition of additives, including functional classes of additives specified in the Food Products Standards and Food Additives Regulations, 2011, may be made where the additive:
- (a) has not been added to the food or removed from the food at the time of manufacture;
- (b) is not contained in any ingredient of the food, except where it is naturally present;
- (c) is one which is allowed to be added in particular products as specified in the 2011 Regulations; and
- (d) has not been substituted by another additive giving the food equivalent characteristics.
Clause (c) ties the claim to an additive that the standards allow in that product. See our sister article on food additives general conditions.
6(4): additional conditions or disclaimers
Additional conditions or disclaimer statements may be used with non-addition claims to help consumers understand them, provided the disclaimer statements are conspicuous and legible.
An invented example: Orchard Fresh makes a mixed fruit drink and wants to print "no added sugar". It adds no sugar of any type (clause (i)), uses no jam or sweetened fruit pieces (clause (ii)), but uses a non-reconstituted concentrated fruit juice as the base. That ingredient is named in clause (iii) as one that substitutes for added sugars, so the claim cannot be made. If Orchard Fresh instead sold a plain pressed juice with sugars naturally present, the claim could be made together with the 'CONTAINS NATURALLY OCCURRING SUGARS' indication.
How this fits with the rest
The general principle that claims be truthful and not misleading (regulation 4) applies on top of these conditions; see general principles for claims. For disclaimers on brand names that might look like claims, see Schedule V. The overview of claims on labels is health and nutritional claims on food labels.
Need help with a no added sugar or no added salt claim?
These claims look simple on the front of pack but rest on a check of every ingredient. Our FSSAI label compliance team can go through your recipe line by line against regulation 6 before you print the claim.
Key takeaways
- A sugars non-addition claim needs all four conditions in 6(1)(a).
- Naturally occurring sugars: the label must say 'CONTAINS NATURALLY OCCURRING SUGARS'.
- A no added salt claim excludes added sodium salts and ingredients carrying them or substituting for salt.
- An additive non-addition claim applies only to additives allowed in that product.
- Disclaimers must be conspicuous and legible.
Read next
- Regulation 5 and Schedule I: nutrition claims
- Regulation 7 and Schedules II–IV: health claims
- Regulations 3 and 4: general principles
- Health and nutritional claims on food labels
Disclaimer: Based on the FSSAI regulations named above as consolidated in FSSAI's compendium versions or as published in the Gazette, with the later notifications the article names (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.