Nestle India today said it will restart the sale of its popular Maggi noodles later this month as government-approved laboratories have found the freshly manufactured batches of the product safe for consumption. Three government-accredited laboratories found the lead content in Maggi noodles below permissible limits, the company said in a statement here. Test results meet the requirements set forth by the Bombay High Court for the Indian unit of the Swiss food giant Nestle SA for restarting sales, it said.
Nestle India said all samples of the newly manufactured batches from its three plants – Nanjangud (Karnataka), Moga (Punjab) and Bicholim (Goa) – have been cleared by three NABL accredited labs, as mandated by the Bombay High Court. “Now that the orders of the Bombay High Court have been complied with, we will make our best endeavor to commence the sale of MAGGI Noodles Masala within this month as well as continue engaging with states where permissions are needed or specific directions may be necessary,” Nestle India said. Nestle is also working on starting manufacturing of Maggi Noodles at its two other plants – Tahliwal and Pantnagar. “.. for the other two locations at Tahliwal and Pantnagar, we are engaging with the relevant authorities in Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand to obtain directions for commencing manufacture of MAGGI Noodles,” it added.
The company was in June ordered to withdraw Maggi following a lab in Uttar Pradesh reporting high lead levels. It challenged the order in Bombay High Court which allowed it to resume sales if tests done at a certified laboratory were found to be acceptable. Nestle India said it has conducted over 3,500 tests representing over 200 million packs in both national as well as international accredited laboratories and all reports are clear. In addition to these, various countries including USA, UK, Singapore, Australia and others have found MAGGI Noodles exported from India safe for consumption. “We have received results from all three NABL (National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories) accredited laboratories mandated by Bombay High Court to test newly manufactured MAGGI Noodles samples. All the samples of the MAGGI Noodles Masala have been cleared with lead much below permissible limits,” it added.
