Terms of Use & Legal Notices
The same notices you accept inside the app — independence, medical and accuracy disclaimers, responsible concern reporting — plus the Indian laws, regulations and standards the app refers to when it explains a label.
01Accepting these terms
These Terms of Use apply to the Bharat Food Verity Android app (com.linaapps.BharatFoodVerity), published by LINA Apps, India. When you first open the app it shows the same notices step by step — privacy, independence, responsible use — and asks you to read to the end before you acknowledge them. By tapping “Accept and enter Bharat Food Verity”, or by using the app, you agree to these terms. If you do not agree, choose “Exit application” and uninstall the app.
The app is free. It requires no account and no payment of any kind, and shows no advertising.
02Independent information — not an official ruling
- Independent service. Bharat Food Verity is not affiliated with, certified by or endorsed by FSSAI, WHO, the Government of India, any regulator, manufacturer or product brand. FSSAI, WHO and JECFA are cited only as sources; their names never imply certification, approval, endorsement or partnership.
- Preliminary information. Results are an independent, automated reading of user-provided packaging and public reference data. They are not an official, laboratory, medical or legal determination.
- Printed facts only. The app reads what is printed on a pack. It cannot detect adulteration, contamination, package damage, recalls or whether the printed numbers are accurate.
03Not medical or dietary advice
Bharat Food Verity is decision support, not diagnosis, treatment, or a substitute for a doctor, dietitian or pharmacist. Daily-limit comparisons are population guidance based on published references — not a personal prescription or a disease prediction.
- If you have an allergy, a medical condition, are pregnant, or are choosing food for an infant, always check the physical pack and follow the advice of a qualified professional.
- For medicines, cosmetics and household chemicals, readings are informational only. Always follow your doctor’s instructions and the product’s own label. In an emergency, contact a doctor or poison-information service immediately.
- Readings of family profiles add a note on top of the shared assessment and never replace professional advice.
04Accuracy and your responsibility
- Text recognition can misread small, curved, glossy or crumpled print. Always verify a result against the physical package before relying on it or sharing it.
- When the app cannot read or verify a fact it says so — “cannot verify” or “cannot judge yet” — rather than guessing. Unknown is never treated as zero.
- Product identity and some additive or allergen data may come from Open Food Facts, a community-contributed catalogue. Such data is labelled as community-sourced and may be incomplete or out of date.
- Regulations change. The bundled rule packs carry versions and dates; a finding reflects the rule version shown with it.
05Using results and reporting concerns responsibly
The app can prepare a PDF evidence pack to help you raise a genuine concern. If you do so, you agree to:
- Keep facts separate. Keep printed label facts separate from reference comparisons and automated observations. Do not convert words such as “possible”, “appears” or “could not verify” into a definitive accusation.
- Choose the appropriate recipient. Submit a genuine concern privately and in good faith to the manufacturer, consumer service or authority legally responsible for reviewing it. Public social-media publication carries additional defamation and misleading-publication risk, and you are responsible for anything you publish.
- Correct the record. If stronger evidence, a clearer photograph or an authority contradicts the result, stop sharing the old result and issue or retain the corrected record.
- Verify every field of an evidence pack against the physical package before submission. An evidence pack is not a legal opinion, a regulator’s finding or proof that a violation occurred.
06Official consumer channels in India
If you believe a product label is misleading, these are the official channels. Please verify current details on the official websites before filing.
| Channel | For | How |
|---|---|---|
| National Consumer Helpline (NCH) Department of Consumer Affairs | Consumer complaints, including misleading advertisements and labels | Toll-free 1915 · consumerhelpline.gov.in · NCH app |
| Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) | Misleading advertisements and unfair trade practices under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019 | Via the Department of Consumer Affairs |
| FSSAI | Food safety, food labelling and food claims | FSSAI’s current consumer-grievance channel on fssai.gov.in |
| Legal Metrology (State departments) | Net quantity, MRP and mandatory package declarations | Your State Legal Metrology department |
07Laws, regulations and standards the app refers to
These are the laws and published standards that Bharat Food Verity refers to when it explains a label or handles your data. The app applies published conditions to declared facts; it does not enforce these laws or interpret them on anyone’s behalf.
Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006
The parent law for food in India, under which FSSAI frames the regulations below.
Food Safety and Standards (Advertising and Claims) Regulations, 2018
Sets the conditions for claims such as “high protein”, “low fat”, “no added sugar”, “natural” and “fresh”. The app’s contradiction check tests front-of-pack claims against these published conditions and returns pass, fail or cannot verify.
Food Safety and Standards (Labelling and Display) Regulations, 2020
Mandatory declarations: name of food, ingredients, nutrition information, veg / non-veg mark, allergen declarations, FSSAI logo and licence number, and date marking. The app reads and explains these.
Food Safety and Standards (Food Products Standards and Food Additives) Regulations, 2011
Lists permitted food additives by INS number and food category (Appendix A). The bundled additive data follows these provisions.
WHO / Joint FAO–WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA)
Additive safety evaluations and acceptable-daily-intake wording, and WHO population guidance on sugars, sodium and fats used for daily-limit comparisons (alongside ICMR-NIN guidance).
Consumer Protection Act, 2019
Consumer rights and the framework against misleading advertisements and unfair trade practices, including the Central Consumer Protection Authority and the National Consumer Helpline.
Legal Metrology Act, 2009 and Legal Metrology (Packaged Commodities) Rules, 2011
Net quantity, MRP, manufacturer / packer details and other mandatory declarations on pre-packaged goods, which the app reads where printed.
Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940 and associated rules
The regime for medicines and cosmetics. Packs identified as medicines or cosmetics are routed to specialist engines and never judged by food rules. The app gives no diagnosis, dosage or treatment recommendation.
Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 and DPDP Rules, 2025
Governs how personal data is processed, your rights to information, correction, erasure, grievance redressal and nomination, and the Data Protection Board of India. See the Privacy Policy.
Information Technology Act, 2000
General legal framework for electronic records and digital services in India.
08Third-party data and licences
- Open Food Facts — product data from this open, community-contributed database is made available under the Open Database Licence (ODbL). Such data is labelled in the app as community-sourced.
- Wikipedia — short ingredient descriptions are from Wikipedia, whose text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike licence. They are badged as a general reference, named as Wikipedia, and never change a regulatory finding.
- Google Play — the app is distributed through Google Play, and your use of Google Play is subject to Google’s own terms and privacy policy.
- Names of regulators, standards bodies and brands belong to their respective owners and are used only to identify sources or the product a user photographed.
09Intellectual property and acceptable use
The app, its name, logo, design, rule engines and content are owned by LINA Apps. You may use the app for personal, non-commercial purposes. You agree not to reverse-engineer it except where permitted by law, not to use it to harass or defame any person or business, and not to present its automated results as an official, laboratory or legal finding.
10Limitation of liability
The app is provided “as is”, free of charge. To the fullest extent permitted by law, LINA Apps is not liable for any loss or damage arising from reliance on an automated reading, from a misread label, from incomplete third-party data, or from how you use or share a result. Nothing in these terms limits any right you have under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019 or any other law that cannot be excluded.
11Governing law and changes
These terms are governed by the laws of India, and the courts of India have jurisdiction. When the terms or notices change, the app shows the updated notice with a new version number and asks you to acknowledge it again before continuing.
12Contact
LINA Apps
Email: hello@linaapps.in
WhatsApp / Phone: +91 78933 39960
Web: linaapps.in
Please mention “Bharat Food Verity” in your message.