Maggi soup turns sour; Govt sues Nestle for Rs 640 cr

New Delhi, Aug 11            

The Central Government is believed to have sued Nestle for Rs 640 crore for unfair trade practices, false labelling and misleading advertisements of its popular, spelling more trouble for the Swiss conglomerate that manufactures the popular instant noodles, Maggi.

This is the first time the Consumer Affairs Ministry has taken a company to the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC) in the three decades that the Consumer Protection Act has been in force.

"We had earlier recommended filing a complaint against Nestle India over the Maggi issue before the NCDRC. Finally, we have filed the complaint," Food and Consumer Affairs Minister Ram Vilas Paswan said on Tuesday.

While he declined to share what the punitive damages the Central Government had sought, he said the new consumer protection Bill —introduced in the Parliament on Monday — would help smooth the consumer redressal process.

However, sources said: "Under section 12(1D) of the Consumer Protection Act, we have filed a complaint before NCDRC against Nestle India over the Maggi issue. We have sought damage of about Rs 640 crore".

Nestle India declined to comment, saying only that the company has yet to receive intimation of the Central Government’s move.

The Ministry accuses Nestle India of misleading consumers by claiming its product was healthy — referring to Maggi’s tag line ‘Taste bhi healthy bhi’.

"The company said no added MSG, despite presence of MSG. The Ministry in its complaint has also charged that there was "lead content" in Maggi noodles more than the prescribed limits and the company has not done "risk assessment nor taken product approval for the Maggi masala oats", sources added.

In June, Food and Safety Authority of India (FSSAI),  the country's food watchdog, had ordered Nestle to take its product off shelves after it found that the lead content was beyond prescribed limits, making it “unsafe for consumption”.

The regulator also accused Nestle of flouting labelling regulations on taste enhancer 'MSG' and ordered the company to submit a compliance report. 

FSSAI seizes 20,000 kg of Maggi from Lucknow warehouse

Food and Safety Authority of India seized 20,000 kg of Maggi from a warehouse on outskirts of the city, a senior Uttar Pradesh Food Safety and Drug Authority official said on Tuesday.

The authority seized 200 quintals of the instant noodles from a company godown in Banthara area, Additional Food Commissioner (Administration) Ram Araj Maurya said.

Nestle India, however, said in a statement that the "20,000 kg of noodles being mentioned in the media reports is not meant for sale and was awaiting onward transportation to the incineration centre".

Nestle said, "As part of the recall procedure and standard operating process, Nestle India has been collecting stocks being returned from the market as well as customers, on a regular basis for over two months. These are being stored at various godowns before sending to cement factories for high temperature thermal destruction,” the company added.

This comes after one more sample of the instant noodles had failed laboratory test, according to a senior UP FDA official.

"A sample which was taken from Deoria has failed the lab test," Additional Commissioner (Food) FDA Vijay Bahadur Yadav had said adding that more than 100 samples are being tested. — PTI