Nestle in soup again as UP says pasta unsafe

Nestle India has landed in trouble again. A state government official told the PTI on Friday that a state-owned food testing laboratory found lead beyond permissible limits in the company's pasta product.

Pazzta samples collected from Nestle distributor - Sriji Traders - in Mau on June 10 were sent to a government food testing laboratory in Lucknow, said Arvind Yadav, designated officer at food and drug administration Mau. "The sample of macroni pasta was taken from Mau and sent to National Food Analysis Laboratory, Lucknow, in which lead was found to be much more that the permissible limit," he said.

"According to the report received on September 2, they failed the tests," the officer said. "The standard limit is 2.5 PPM (parts per million) while it has been found to be 6 PPM. The letter informing Nestle sent at its Modinagar address has come back here undelivered," Yadav said. "They (Nestle) were sent a letter over a month ago intimating them about the results. They had a month's time to appeal against the test but the letter sent by the FDA was not received by the company and was returned here."

A spokesperson from Nestle India told the Business Standard: "Maggi Pazzta is 100 per cent safe. The finished product and the raw materials used undergo rigorous testing during every stage of manufacturing. We have seen reports claiming lead has been found in the product and we are investigating. We have not received any formal notification from the authorities in UP or from the FSSAI about such test results. We will work with the authorities to resolve the situation as quickly as possible."

On the basis of the report, the product now comes under the 'unsafe food category', Yadav said. "The report has been sent to the FDA Commissioner (Lucknow) on October 12 for sanction to lodge a case and in case it is received it will be filed in the court of the CJM here," Yadav said. The official, to questions, said, "It can also lead to a ban."