Nestle India to Destroy $50 Million of Maggi Noodles
Nestle India will destroy $50 million worth of instant noodles after a sales ban imposed by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India. Tests show that the noodles contain unusually high levels of lead.
Nestle’s Maggi noodles--first introduced to India in the early 1980s--are an extremely popular snack among India’s young students and workers. India banned the noodles earlier this month following test results proving that lead levels were far beyond India’s legal limit. Tests also indicated the presence of monosodium glutamate (MSG)--an ingredient not listed on the package. Paul Bulcke, Nestle’s global chief executive, says that MSG is naturally produced during the making of the noodles and the company did not intentionally add the ingredient. Bulcke also believes that the noodles’ lead levels are in fact within India’s legal limits.