A fresh QCO puts aluminium cans and cookware under the compliance spotlight

While the Indian government is taking charge in reshaping its quality control orders (QCOs) with the aim of ameliorating the current compliance costs, it has issued a fresh order which focuses on the aluminium beverage cans and cookware.

The Cookware, Utensils and Cans for Foods and Beverages (Quality Control) Order, 2026, as notified by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade on Friday, replacing the 2025 order, mandates that the wrought aluminium utensils and aluminium beverage cans will now be required to adhere to the mandatory certification. 

Alongside this, these items are also required to make use of the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) mark for some of its specified products and will be rolled out till April 2027, especially for micro enterprises.

The mandate of QCOs is applicable to the goods which are being imported within the Indian boundaries for domestic use, ensuring that the quality of these products meets the quality standards as marked. Irrespective of the Indian government removing more than 50 OQCs in the past two months after the recommendations given by the NITI Aayog committee, which is being chaired by Rajiv Gauba, the former Cabinet Secretary.

Also read: BIS certification delay results in an increased import rush for beverage cans

The Centre has been withdrawing the QCOs in the past few years, which is being done as a response to the rising industrial concerns regarding the overlapping regulations, implementation costs and compliance readiness. At present, the country has 712 QCOs in comparison to the previous number, which peaked at 761.

Jaijit Bhattacharya, founder and president, Centre for Digital Economy Policy Research (C-DEP), a policy think tank, stated, "The aluminium cookware and beverage cans order fits into this narrower focus on products with direct consumer health and safety implications, even as the broader QCO framework undergoes review and consolidation."

Within the order that talks about the aluminium cookware, it is important for the general manufacturers other than the micro and small enterprises to adhere to it, which is applicable from October 1, 2026. The small enterprises are also to adhere, but still have until January 1, 2027 and the micro enterprises till April 1, 2027.

Additionally, the Indian importers and the domestic manufacturers are also included within this order; however, the goods manufactured in India are exclusively for exports and have been removed from maintaining these requirements.

According to the notification, a six-month sell-through window has been provided to the existing manufactured stocks or the imported goods before the respective dates stated above are implemented. They are also subject to a declaration as certified by a chartered accountant and have been further submitted to the BIS.

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The products that have been imported by the country beforehand and are filled with solid, liquid and gaseous materials, are kept outside the order scope as the manufacturers will be permitted to import up to 200 units annually. They are allowed with the imports with the niche of research and development, are not sold commercially and are further discarded as scrap.

The current applicable standards maintain IS 1660:2024 code for the wrought aluminium utensils and the 14407:2023 code for the aluminium beverage cans as per the latest version, and the amendments notified by BIS will be applied automatically. In this scenario, BIS will hold both the enforcement and certifying authority within the order, as said in the notification.

According to the commerce ministry data, the products which are imported under the Aluminium QCOs have risen to USD 66.65 million in FY25 from USD 57.28 million in FY24. The countries from where these products are imported are the UK, the UAE, the US, Sri Lanka, Thailand and China, among others.

The order passed is deemed to make a clear impact on the domestic manufacturers, importers of aluminium cookware and beverage cans and MSMEs, who are required to adhere to the compliance standards as set by BIS.

On the other hand, the consumers are expected to benefit from the improved product qualities and the exporters are excluded. Higher demand can be seen from testing labs and certification bodies due to the firms seeking compliance. 

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