FSSAI will ask Patanjali to show cause

To issue notice after complaints on alleged misleading ad of mustard oil

Food regulator FSSAI has asked its central licensing authority to issue a show cause notice to Patanjali Ayurved over complaints about alleged misleading advertisement of mustard oil product. FSSAI is Food Safety and Standards Authority of India. Yoga guru Baba Ramdev is the promoter of Patanjali Ayurved.

Edible oil sector body Solvent Extractors’  Association (SEA) filed the complaints with FSSAI and Asci (Advertising Standards Council of India).

FSSAI asked its central licensing authority, northern region, to issue a show cause notice to Patanjali Ayurved for "violations of FSS Act, 2006".

Sources in FSSAI said the authority had sought a response from Patanjali.

There was no immediate response to queries sent to Patanjali.

"Asci has also taken serious note of misleading statements made in advertisement of Kacchi Ghani oil and hauls up Patanjali for misleading advertisement," SEA said.

“The advertisement is unnecessarily misleading the consumer and derogatory and denigrating to the oil sector,” SEA said, adding the vegetable oil sector was a responsible one and such unfounded communications negated the image of the sector.

Also, Asci has rapped Patanjali Ayurved for "false and misleading" claims in its various advertisements.

"The advertisement's claims ‘other than kacchi ghani process, most other edible refined oils and mustard oil are made using the neurotoxin hexagon solvent extraction process. To make profits at the cost of consumers' health, many companies mix cheap palm oil in mustard oil’, were not substantiated and the claims were misleading," Asci said last week.

Patanjali had insisted its commercial was based on facts, findings, and research. They did not intend to mislead anyone.