FSSAI
Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 (full text)
The core food law behind every CFSO, TO and Food Analyst law paper.
Exam resources
FSSAI Central Food Safety Officer 2026
The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India recruits Central Food Safety Officers to support food-safety inspection and enforcement under the Food Safety and Standards Act.
Syllabus-aligned FSSAI CFSO notes, solved questions and practice sets. Preview 20 pages free.
This recruitment examination covers Central Food Safety Officer and Technical Officer posts at the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India. The syllabus emphasises the Food Safety and Standards Act and associated regulations alongside core food science.
- Conducted by
- Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI)
Who can apply
A degree in Food Technology satisfies the prescribed educational qualification for Food Safety Officer posts in India. Rule 2.1.3 of the Food Safety and Standards Rules, 2011 defines this qualification at the national level.
- Degree in Food Technology, Dairy Technology, Biotechnology, Oil Technology, Agricultural Science, Veterinary Science, Bio-Chemistry or Microbiology
- or an M.Sc in Chemistry, or a degree in Medicine
- Plus the training the Food Authority specifies, at a recognised institute
- Age limits, fees and relaxations are set per notification — check the current one
A summary. Confirm the details in the current notice.
Source: FSS Rules 2011 (Rule 2.1.3) ↗. Checked 2026-08-15.
Based on past papers, not an official scheme. Confirm in the current notice.
Every section is compulsory, with no choice between them, and the paper is timed at 180 minutes.
| Section | Questions | Marks | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| General Aptitude And Computer Literacy | 25 | 25 | Compulsory |
| Functional Knowledge | 75 | 75 | Compulsory |
| Paper total | — | 100 |
General Aptitude/Computer Literacy and Functional Knowledge are both compulsory — there is no optional section to choose.
Marking scheme
+4 for a correct answer, −1 for a wrong answer. An unanswered question scores zero. Our mocks for this exam are scored the same way.
Official category-wise cut-offs published by FSSAI for Central Food Safety Officer. The 2022 figures are from the DR-04/2021 recruitment, which is the most recent CFSO recruitment on FSSAI's Jobs page. No 2023-24 CFSO cycle was found. Final shortlisting combined CBT-1 and CBT-2 at 50% weight each and was reported out of 100. The 2019 notice does not state the CBT's maximum marks.
| Year | Stage | UR | OBC | EWS | SC | ST | PwBD (HI) | PwBD (HH) | PwD | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Shortlisting for document verification: combined CBT-1 + CBT-2 score, 50% weight each (out of 100) | 74.37 | 71.88 | 73.44 | 69.90 | 67.08 | 61.88 | — | — | Official, FSSAI Notice-1 (DR-04/2021), 28 Dec 2022 ↗ |
| 2022 | CBT Stage-1, shortlisting for CBT Stage-2 (120 MCQs x 4 marks = 480 max, -1 per wrong answer) | 300 | 279 | 267 | 267 | 252 | — | 109 | — | Official, FSSAI Result Notice (Advt DR-04/2021), 06 Jul 2022 ↗ |
| 2019 | Computer Based Test, shortlisting for the written exam at 1:20 (maximum marks not stated in the notice) | 269 | 252 | 233 | 240 | 229 | — | — | 125 | Official, FSSAI notice on DR-02/2019 CBT results, 15 Nov 2019 ↗ |
Compared across past papers. Not an official announcement.
| Change | Compared papers | Before | After | What changed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 New pattern | FSSAI CFSO 2022 (30 Mar) → FSSAI CFSO 2022 (01 Oct) | 111 q 111 marks 180 min 7 sections | 80 q 80 marks 180 min 1 section |
Questions
111 → 80
Marks
111 → 80
Dropped
General Aptitude, General Awareness, English Language Comprehension, Computer Literacy, Indian and International Food Laws (Overview), FSSAI(General understanding)
|
| 2022 | FSSAI Technical Officer 2022 (31 March, Shift 1) → FSSAI CFSO 2022 (30 Mar) | 120 q 480 marks 180 min 7 sections | 111 q 111 marks 180 min 7 sections |
Questions
120 → 111
Marks
480 → 111
Dropped
FSSAI (General Understanding)
Added
FSSAI(General understanding)
|
| 2022 | FSSAI CFSO 2019 → FSSAI Technical Officer 2022 (31 March, Shift 1) | 100 q 100 marks 120 min 2 sections | 120 q 480 marks 180 min 7 sections |
Questions
100 → 120
Duration
120 → 180 min
Marks
100 → 480
Dropped
General Aptitude And Computer Literacy, Functional Knowledge
Added
General Aptitude, General Awareness, English Language Comprehension, Computer Literacy, Indian and International Food Laws (Overview), FSSAI (General Understanding), Domain Section
|
Free PDFs and recommended books for FSSAI CFSO. How we choose
Free PDFs
12 free PDFsFood safety & law
FSSAI
Manual for Food Safety Officers — A Ready Reckoner
FSSAI's own handbook of a Food Safety Officer's hygiene and enforcement duties.
FSSAI
Manual of Methods of Analysis of Foods — Spices and Condiments
Official methods for spice quality and adulterant detection.
FSSAI
Compendium — Food Additives Regulations (December 2022)
Consolidated legal limits for additives by food category.
Processing & preservation
FSSAI
Manual of Methods of Analysis of Foods — Cereal and Cereal Products (2022)
Official analytical methods for cereals and flours.
FSSAI · FoSTaC
FoSTaC Manual — Special (Level 2), Bakery
Bakery process hygiene and hazards as FSSAI sets them out.
NCERT
Class 12 Human Ecology & Family Sciences — Food Processing and Technology
A plain-language overview of preservation and processing.
NIOS
Home Science (321), Lesson 9 — Food Preservation
Household and basic industrial preservation principles.
Food chemistry
FSSAI
Manual of Methods of Analysis of Foods — Oils and Fats
Official methods for acid, iodine and saponification values and related tests.
NCERT
Class 11 Biology — Biomolecules
Carbohydrates, proteins, lipids and enzymes.
NCERT
Class 12 Chemistry — Biomolecules
Structures of sugars, amino acids, vitamins and nucleic acids.
Nutrition
ICMR-NIN
Dietary Guidelines for Indians (2024, 2nd edition)
India's official diet, RDA and My Plate guidance.
Official and open resources
11 resourcesOfficial syllabus
FSSAI indicative syllabus, Advt DR-04/2021 (CFSO, Technical Officer, Food Analyst and other posts)
FSSAI's own post-wise syllabus from the last CFSO recruitment.
Official law
Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 (English)
The parent law; FSO and CFSO papers test its sections, offences and penalties.
Official law
Food Safety and Standards Rules, 2011 (compendium, Version I, 01.04.2025)
Rule 2.1.3 sets the FSO qualification and duties.
Official law
FSS (Licensing and Registration of Food Businesses) Regulations, 2011 (compendium)
Covers the registration and licence thresholds.
Official law
FSS (Food Products Standards and Food Additives) Regulations, 2011
Commodity standards and additive limits.
Official law
FSS (Contaminants, Toxins and Residues) Regulations, 2011
Limits for metals, mycotoxins, pesticide residues and antibiotics.
Official law
FSS (Laboratory and Sample Analysis) Regulations, 2011
Sampling and laboratory procedure, needed for Food Analyst and FSO duties.
Official law
FSS (Packaging) Regulations, 2018 (compendium, 02.04.2025)
Food-contact material rules and packaging requirements.
Official law
FSS (Labelling and Display) Regulations, 2020 (compendium, Version VIII, 09.09.2025)
Current labelling, nutrition-information and front-of-pack display rules.
Open reference
WHO Five Keys to Safer Food Manual
WHO's core food-hygiene messages, often asked in FSO hygiene questions.
Open reference
FAO/WHO Codex Food Hygiene Basic Texts (4th ed., 2009)
Contains the Codex General Principles of Food Hygiene with the HACCP annex.
Exam-specific preparation
1 resourceMCQ practice
Objective Food Science and Safety Standards
Objective-style practice for food safety, standards.
Reading suggestion
Core food science
4 resourcesCore food technology
Textbook of Food Science and Technology (ICAR)
Indian food-science baseline for processing, preservation, chemistry.
Reading suggestion
Core food science
Food Science by B. Srilakshmi
Useful for food chemistry, nutrition, preservation.
Reading suggestion
Microbiology
Food Microbiology by M. R. Adams and M. O. Moss
Strong reference for spoilage, pathogens, fermentation.
Reading suggestion
Food engineering
Food Process Engineering and Technology by Zeki Berk
Good engineering reference for heat transfer, dehydration, freezing.
Reading suggestion
Aptitude and general studies
1 resourceAptitude
Quantitative Aptitude by R. S. Aggarwal
Useful for arithmetic, reasoning-adjacent quantitative practice in recruitment papers.
Reading suggestion
Free channels worth following for FSSAI CFSO.
YouTube channels
6 channelsOfficial
Food Safety and Standards Authority of India
The regulator's own videos on food safety rules, Eat Right campaigns.
University/NPTEL
Novel Technologies for Food Processing & Shelf Life Extension — IIT Kharagpur (Prof. H. N. Mishra)
IIT course on food constituents, quality and safety.
Educator
Food Tech 360
Topic-wise food-tech MCQs and concept videos, with playlists for GATE XL/XE.
Coaching (free lectures)
Adda247 Food Science
Free FSSAI CFSO classes on food chemistry, analysis.
Coaching (free lectures)
Agriculture & GK
Long free class series for FSSAI CFSO.
Coaching (free lectures)
Swa Education
Broad free FSO coverage — unit-wise MP FSO classes, Rajasthan, Haryana.
Telegram channels
4 channelsEducator
Food Tech 360
Exam notifications, official syllabi, admit-card and date updates.
Coaching (free lectures)
Adda247 Food Science
Daily food-science quiz polls.
Coaching (free lectures)
Agriculture & GK
Daily recruitment notifications.
Coaching (free lectures)
Food Tech Scholars
A food-tech-only feed from Agriculture & GK.
Full topic list and section weightage FSSAI CFSO syllabus and exam pattern
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- Full mock test Free Hard Set 25 FSSAI CFSO Mock Test 25 480Marks 180 minDuration Free Start test
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- Full mock test Free Hard Set 28 FSSAI CFSO Mock Test 28 480Marks 180 minDuration Free Start test