The Sattvik Council of India, in partnership with the international auditing/certifying company, Bureau Veritas, brings out standards and certification for vegetarian food.

The Sattvik Council of India has announced the world's first certification programme for vegetarian food in partnership with world’s leading auditing and certifying body, Bureau Veritas. Through this, both Sattvik Council and Bureau Veritas, plans to offer certification to vegetarian food globally, in the lines of Halal and Kosher standards, for Islamic and Jewish dietary principles, respectively.

The objective of the certification programme is to render an assurance to vegetarian/vegan consumers in India and global markets that the food they are consuming is prepared after following thorough guidelines and standards prescribed.

Speaking to ETHospitalityWorld after the launch of the certification scheme in Delhi, Abhishek Biswas, founder of Sattvik Council of India, said that they have filled the vacuum and probably alleviated the dilemma faced by vegetarians across the world while travelling to places. The certification will bring trust, reliability and confidence in consumers. He said that it will also trigger new investments and generate employment opportunities in the ecosystem going forward.

“Globally, people are converting to vegetarianism in a big way after Covid. Veganism is also catching up fast in many countries. By bringing standards and certification, we want to promote vegetarianism and veganism with purity assurance. With a certifying partner like Bureau Veritas onboard, the world is the target,” Biswas said.

Amit Ghosh, senior vice president - South Asia (Commodities, Industry and Facilities Division) of Bureau Veritas (India) said that they have developed a comprehensive Sattvik Management System after a lot of research, consultation with experts in the field and with inputs from the Sattvik Council of India. He said that the entire supply chain will be audited, verified and certified periodically as well as through surveillance audits to ensure the standards are strictly followed.

With the new standards, Ghosh said that the suppliers and food businesses can set their objectives by following the guidelines set by the certifying agency for them.