FSSAI asks Nestle to stop production of Maggi immediately

The central food safety regulator Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has ordered Nestle to recall nine variants of Maggi instant noodles from the market. FSSAI test results finds nine variants of the noodle brand 'unsafe and hazardous' for human consumption. It has, in turn, asked Nestle to stop their production, import and sale with immediate effect.

Over the past days, several Indian states, including Delhi, have banned the popular instant food, Maggi, saying laboratory tests of samples tested for dangerous high levels of lead. The bans came about two weeks after initial concerns about Maggi noodles were raised in the state of Uttar Pradesh.

India food minister Ram Vilas Paswan had told reporters that he ordered nationwide testing of the packaged noodles.

Retailers, prominent among them Future Group, also pulled Maggi from its store shelves. The Maggi brand is a very popular brand among many Indians with its "two-minute noodles" catchphrase. Many look to it as a quick snack that's a departure from the traditional staple of rice, bread and lentils.

Maggi issued a statement recently saying that the company submitted almost 600 batches to an external laboratory and found the lead levels were well within safety limits.