When Packaging Stops Being Design and Starts Becoming a Business Risk

Images are respective brand’s properties, and are used here for illustration purpose

The recent FSSAI notice issued to Lotte India over allegedly misleading packaging claims caught my attention, not because regulators issuing notices is unusual, but because this is Lotte.

This is one of the world's largest food companies with decades of manufacturing experience, global systems and established quality processes. When an organisation of this scale receives a regulatory notice on something as fundamental as packaging, it raises an important question.

How does something like this even happen?

None of us outside the organisation know what actually led to this situation. It would be unfair to speculate on the facts.

But having worked on packaging for regulated categories for many years, I can think of a few ways such situations can arise. More importantly, these are the same mistakes I see many brands unknowingly making.

Packaging is no longer just a branding exercise

Most people still think of packaging as colours, graphics and shelf appeal.

In reality, packaging is also a legal document.

Every word, every claim, every icon and every product descriptor is communicating something to the consumer. Many of these elements are governed by regulations. A seemingly harmless phrase can become a compliance issue if it creates the wrong consumer impression or fails to meet regulatory requirements.

That is why packaging design is as much about understanding the law as it is about understanding branding.

Could AI be making us overconfident?

Today, AI can create impressive packaging concepts within minutes.

It writes copy.It suggests product claims.It generates layouts.It can even replicate the visual language of global brands.

What it cannot reliably do is understand the nuances of Indian food regulations.

It does not know which claims require substantiation, which words carry legal implications or how different regulations interact with one another. If teams begin relying on AI for execution without experienced human review, compliance gaps become much more likely.

AI is a brilliant creative assistant.

It is not a compliance expert.

Sometimes global packaging is simply adapted for India

This is another possibility.

Large multinational companies often have successful products already selling in multiple countries. The natural temptation is to adapt an existing pack for the Indian market.

The challenge is that regulations are local.

A claim that is perfectly acceptable in Korea, Japan or Europe may require different wording in India. Some declarations may need to be added. Others may need to be prioritised differently.

Good localisation is much more than translating text.

It requires understanding the regulatory and cultural context of the market.

Experience matters far more than most brands realise

Another possibility is that packaging execution gets treated as artwork production rather than strategic design.

One agency develops the brand.Another adapts the packaging.Someone else prepares production artwork.

By the time the files go to print, the people making important decisions may not have the experience to recognise compliance risks.

This isn't about talent.

It is about specialised knowledge.

Packaging for regulated industries is a discipline in itself. It demands an understanding of branding, manufacturing, printing, consumer behaviour and regulatory compliance, all working together.

For a company like Lotte, this is not a small mistake

A regulatory notice is never just about changing a few words on a pack.

It can trigger packaging revisions, inventory write-offs, production delays, distributor disruption and significant financial costs.

But the bigger loss is often invisible.

Trust.

Consumers assume that large multinational companies have robust systems, multiple layers of review and global best practices. When something as basic as packaging compliance comes into question, it weakens that perception.

For a company of this scale, the reputational impact can be far greater than the immediate financial cost.

These are mistakes that simply should not happen.

Packaging has a much longer life than most marketing assets

A social media post disappears in a day.

A campaign lasts a few weeks.

Packaging stays in the market for years.

It is printed in hundreds of thousands, sometimes millions, of units. It sits on retail shelves, enters homes and becomes the single most consistent piece of communication a consumer sees.

Which is why packaging deserves the same level of strategic thinking as product

development itself.

Perhaps even more.

The real lesson

If there is one lesson for brands from incidents like these, it is this.

Packaging is not the place to optimise costs by choosing the cheapest execution partner.

The design fee is often insignificant compared to the cost of getting the packaging wrong.

Good packaging certainly helps sell products.

Great packaging also protects the business.

And that is a responsibility that should always sit with people who understand both design and the consequences of every word that goes on a pack.