Essential character test governs excise classification of nutritional products; protein-rich drink held classifiable as food, not medicament.

For central excise classification, the essential character of "Zest Powder" was determinative: it was presented as a protein-rich nutritional drink for everyday consumption, with no specific disease, ailment, dosage, or therapeutic indication. The presence of vitamins, minerals, and pharmacopoeial ingredients did not by itself make it a medicament, and manufacture under a drug licence was not decisive for tariff classification. The product also fell within the Chapter 30 exclusion for food supplements and tonic beverages. It was therefore classifiable as a food product under Chapter 21, not as a medicament under Chapter 30.

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Issues: Whether the product "Zest Powder" was classifiable as a medicament under Chapter 30 of the Central Excise Tariff Act, 1985 or as a food product under Chapter 21.

Analysis: The product label described it as a protein-rich nutritional formula, a delicious drink, and versatile nourishment, with no specific disease, ailment, dosage, or treatment indication. The product was marketed for everyday consumption like a health food, and the presence of vitamins, minerals, and pharmacopoeial ingredients did not by itself make it a medicament. The fact that manufacture was under a drug licence was held not to be for central excise classification. The Chapter 30 exclusion for food supplements, tonic beverages, and similar products supported classification outside medicaments, and the physician sample labels did not establish use for treatment or prevention of a specific disease.

Conclusion: The product was not a medicament and was correctly classifiable as a food product under Chapter 21; the classification under Chapter 30 failed.

Ratio Decidendi: For central excise classification, the decisive test is the product's essential character as understood in common parlance and its specific therapeutic indication, not the mere presence of medicinal ingredients or a drug licence.

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