Government of India bans Chloramphenicol and Nitrofurans and its formulations for use in any food producing animal rearing system
Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India, in pursuance of power under Section 26A of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940, has prohibited the import, manufacture, sale, and distribution of Chloramphenicol and its formulations and also Nitrofurans and its formulations for use in any food producing animal rearing system, vide SO 1158 (E) dated 12.03.2025, with immediate effect.
Food Safety and Standards Authority of India, in July 2018, vide its regulation on contaminants, toxins and residues, has not permitted the use of Nitrofurans and Chloramphenicol at any stage of processing of meat and meat products, poultry, eggs, sea foods.
Food Producing Animal Rearing System means practicing or processing breeding, caring livestock animals producing food or may be consumed as food. Chloramphenicol and Nitrofurans are antimicrobial agents with significant health risks such as reproductive toxicity, hepatotoxicity in livestock, impairing intestinal function, genotoxicity and carcinogenicity.