India finds Nestle baby food sample substandard, takes legal action
The scrutiny is the latest in a crackdown on India’s US$100 billion (S$127 billion) food industry which has included surprise factory visits and product testing.
India's food regulator has discovered a Nestle baby food sample to be substandard and is pursuing legal action against the Swiss company, marking one of the country's most significant growth markets. Nestle claims its products are "fully compliant with all the applicable regulations" and will continue to collaborate closely with the regulator.
The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) found Nestle's "follow-up formula," a milk product for infants, to be "substandard with respect to biotin," a vitamin commonly known as vitamin B7. The regulator specifies a standardised reference range for biotin in baby food. Officials have not revealed whether they will order a recall of the product.
Nestle, whose shares in India fell nearly 3% following the news, considers India a crucial growth market. Milk and nutrition products, including infant formulas and baby foods, constitute a third of Nestle India's product sales, generating US$2.4 billion in revenue. The FSSAI has also filed cases against Nestle for two other baby food products for making misleading claims in violation of regulations.
Nestle India states that its labels are factual and supported by scientific literature, and they were approved by the FSSAI expert committee.
Written by urgent.news from Channel News Asia's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
