Nestle India takes Maggi noodles off the shelves after ban in Delhi, Gujarat, Jammu and Kashmir, more

Nestle India has decided to take Maggi noodles off the shelves after a controversy erupted over its contents, prompting several states to ban the ‘two-minute’ noodles.

Asserting that the product was “completely safe”, the company in a statement on Friday said, “Unfortunately, recent developments and unfounded concerns about the product have led to an environment of confusion for the consumer, to such an extent that we have decided to withdraw the product off the shelves…”

Also read: Nestle India stock continues its slide as company withdraws Maggi noodles

“We promise that the trusted MAGGI Noodles will be back in the market as soon as the current situation is clarified,” it added.

Maggi sales have plunged in India since laboratory tests ordered by some state governments showed the noodles contained lead at levels far higher than legally allowed. The tests also detected the chemical flavor enhancer monosodium glutamate, or MSG, which is not mentioned in the product’s list of ingredients.

Maggi noodles are a hot favorite with school and college students and Nestle’s “two-minute” advertising campaign stressing the ease of making the snack have made it a household name in India. The noodles are Nestle’s fastest-selling food item in India, clocking about 15 billion rupees ($240 million) in sales annually.

Maggi noodles banned in various states in India

After Delhi, four more states — Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Jammu and Kashmir and Uttarakhand– today banned the sale of Maggi noodles after concerns were raised over presence of monosodium glutamate (MSG) and lead beyond permissible levels in the product.

The Tamil Nadu and Uttarakhand governments banned the sale of Nestle’s instant noodles for three months while in Gujarat the ban will be effective for one month after some samples of the food had failed lab tests, officials said in Chennai, Dehradun and Gandhinagar.

In Jammu and Kashmir, the state government banned the sale for one month till the receipt of reports over the fitness of the fast food for human consumption.

The four states also ordered the noodle manufacturers Nestle India to immediately withdraw the stocks.

Bihar and Uttar Pradesh are awaiting results of tests of samples of the noodles taken from the respective states before taking any action. Delhi had yesterday banned sale of the food item for 15 days.

Apart from Maggi, the Gujarat government also tested one sample each of instant noodles of Sunfeast and S K Foods and has banned the latter for a month as high lead content of 4 PPM was found in it.