Maggi recalled across India
Print Edition
NESTLE SA, battling a reputational crisis in India, pulled its Maggi instant noodles from stores across the country yesterday after regulators reported some packets contained excess lead.
After coming under fire for failing to react swiftly and decisively, Nestle bowed to pressure yesterday and announced an India-wide recall.
In an effort to quell India’s most significant food scare in nearly a decade, the Swiss food giant fielded group chief executive Paul Bulcke to calm consumers at a televised press conference. Instead, he faced a rowdy gathering where he was frequently shouted down by Indian reporters.
Adding to Nestle’s troubles, India’s food safety regulator issued a statement just as that meeting ended, accusing the food giant of violating labelling and other rules in India. It ordered a recall of the instant noodles it said were “unsafe and hazardous” for human consumption.
“We are a company that lives on the trust of our consumers,” Bulcke told a packed news conference in New Delhi, repeating that it had protectively recalled the noodles to ease the minds of “shaken” consumers, but that there was no safety concern.
Sales of Maggi in India represent roughly 0.005 percent of Nestle’s global revenue of almost 92 billion Swiss francs (US$98.6 billion), but the brand damage could extend further, and Bulcke admitted the company had fallen short.
“If you have confusion there is something wrong with communications. That’s why we are sitting here,” he said.
Since inspectors in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh made their first report two weeks ago, at least six states, several major retailers and the Indian army have banned Maggi noodles. On Thursday, Tamil Nadu became the first state to ban several instant noodle brands, including Nestle’s.
Maggi two-minute noodles, which sell for a dozen rupees (20 US cents) per packet, are hugely popular in India.
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