ITC Ltd, the biggest Indian-owned FMCG brand, said it had not got any information or notice from the government of Uttar Pradesh about excess lead in its YiPPee brand of noodles and pasta.
The company was responding to media reports that said that the UP Government’s Food and Drug Administration had detected excess lead in these products.
Nestle-owned Maggi noodles has been forced to carry out a nationwide recall after state governments found excess quantities of harmful chemicals. The company has since received reprieve from the Bombay High Court.
“Company (ITC) has not received any communication from the U.P. Government authorities on this issue. Stories such as this can be misleading and only help create suspicion and mistrust in the minds of the consumer. This will not only damage the brand but also severely impact industry as a whole and future investment for the economy,” the Indian company said.
“The Company manufactures Sunfeast YiPPeel noodles and pasta to the highest standards of Safety and quality. We rigorously and regularly test our product for all parameters including heavy metals both in our in-house National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories (NABL) accredited laboratory at the ITC Life Sciences and Technology Centre, Bengaluru, and external NABL accredited and Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) approved laboratories,” it added.
It also said that it recently carried out tests of a large number of samples of Sunfeast YiPPeel noodles and pasta both internally and externally at NABL-accredited FSSA]-approved laboratories, and have found that all the samples conformed to the Food Safety Regulations.