Five months after Maggi faced a countrywide ban, Nestle India’s instant noodle brand has staged a comeback in Karnataka and Gujarat.
The move by the two State Governments to allow the sale of the popular instant noodle brand comes after Maggi samples cleared quality tests in the three laboratories designated by the Bombay High Court.
However, the country’s top food regulator, Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), is yet to take any decision to lift the ban it had imposed on its sale, alleging that it contained lead beyond permissible limits.
“Gujarat Government’s Food and Drugs Control Administration (FDCA) lifted the ban on the sale of Maggi noodles in the State on Monday and the maker of the instant food can now sell the edible product in Gujarat. We took the decision based on the court’s order,” FDCA Commissioner HG Koshia said.
“Despite no ban on sale in Gujarat since August, Maggi is not yet available as Nestle is learnt to be waiting to clear all tests by the three laboratories suggested by the Bombay High Court,” said a senior official in Gujarat’s Health Department.
The Karnataka Government too has lifted the ban on Maggi noodles in the State. State Health Minister UT Khader said that the production of the instant noodles in the State will begin soon.
Khader added that there was no clarity from the Centre on why the ban on sale of Maggi should prevail.
Making an announcement on lifting the ban on Maggi, Khader said as none of the food testing laboratories has quantified the extent of lead and monosodium glutamate (MSG) content in Maggi, the ban was withdrawn with immediate effect. However, Khader said that the department would not allow marketing of old stock in the market. “Only fresh product would be allowed in the market after testing,” he clarified.
Maggi noodles were banned in the country by different State Governments earlier this year for alleged discrepancy in quality and quantity of ingredients. The FSSAI had tested Maggi samples collected from different States in the wake of Uttar Pradesh’s
Food Safety and Drug Administration (FSDA) finding monosodium glutamate and lead in excess of the prescribed limits in the popular snack.
Gujarat’s FDCA had also claimed that all 27 samples collected from different parts of the State had failed the tests as lead content was found above the prescribed limit in 14 samples while monosodium glutamate, which should not be there at all, was found in all the samples.
The Gujarat Government had banned the sale of Maggi for a month beginning June 6 which was extended by one more month till August.
Following the ban, Nestle India had approached the Bombay High Court challenging the FSSAI’s decision after which the court had asked the company for fresh tests of its food products.
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