Delhi Food Commissioner: 12 of 13 Maggi samples had too much lead, MSG

Sources said lead levels in the faulty samples were found to range from three to over 4 parts per million. In tests conducted among samples in Barabanki by the UP authorities, lead content in a dozen samples was found to be 17.2 parts per million. “Lead has many adverse health effects, even if the level is one unit above the prescribed limit. So violation of safety standards can have huge ramifications,” Jindal explained. The samples which have been collected across the city have been tested at a private NABL accredited laboratory according to sources.

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In five samples, Delhi government officials said “misbranding” was identified in the samples. “MSG has been detected in five samples, when it is stated in all Maggi packs that they do not contain MSG,” Jindal explained. He said while the penalty for permissible limits is higher including for misbranding there is only a penalty of a fine.

Delhi government officials said all the samples were tested for both the noodles and the taste-makers. Officials said problems were identified only in the taste-maker. FSSAI had last week state governments to collect samples of Maggi and test them for different parameters, including lead and MSG after the UP FDA and a referral laboratory in Kolkata under FSSAI found high levels of both substances in tested Maggi samples. The Delhi government is likely to initiate legal proceedings in the findings and summon Nestle officials.According to Delhi health minister Satyendra Jain, “We will be initiating legal action against Nestle and Maggi, immediately including filing a police complaint, we will also continue to test more and more samples.”Sources said the state government has called a meeting of health department officials on Wednesday to take a call on the decision to ban the product.

Nestle India, in their statement on May 21 after the UP lab results, had maintained they did not use MSG but other permitted ingredients used in Maggi also contained glutamates. “We do not add MSG to our Maggi noodles sold in India and this is stated on the concerned product. However, we use hydrolysed groundnut protein, onion powder and wheat flour to make Maggi noodles sold in India, which all contain glutamate. We believe that the authorities’ tests may have detected glutamate, which occurs naturally in many foods,” the company said.