New Delhi: Unfazed by mounting trouble over the alleged presence of led and MSG in Maggi noodles, Nestle on Friday said the product is safe but is withdrawing it from the Indian market as "unfounded reasons" have created "confusion" affecting consumer trust.
Nestle global Chief Executive Paul Bulcke, who flew in from Switzerland to take stock of the situation after Maggi was banned in several states, said the company will cooperate with all authorities to resolve issues.
"We felt unfounded reasons resulted in confusion and the trust of consumers was shaken," he said in a press conference where reporters pounded him with questions on the high content of lead and MSG in Maggi.
He said lead in general was omnipresent in the environment and the content in Maggi noodles was way below the permissible limits.
Read: Nestle India decides to remove popular noodles from stores
Monosodium glutamate (MSG), he said, was not added by Nestle in Maggi but was coming from natural ingredients.
The press conference coincided with the central food safety regulator FSSAI ordering recall of all nine approved variants of Maggi instant noodles from the market, terming them "unsafe and hazardous" for human consumption.
Reiterating that the company's instant noodles are safe, Bulcke said: "We apply the same quality standards and methods in the world here in India too. Our tests have found that Maggi is absolutely safe."
Asked whether he was questioning the testing standards of the labs of regulators in India, he replied in the negative.
All that the company was trying to do is to sit with the authorities and discuss issues in a bid to sort them out, he said.
Bulcke said Nestle India conducted tests over 1,000 batches of Maggi noodles at its own labs accredited labs and over 600 batches at external laboratories. All the results indicate that Maggi Noodles are safe and well within the regulatory limits established in India.
He said the company is cooperating with authorities in its efforts to "bring Maggi on the shelves as soon as possible".
The company declined to share details of how many batches and packets it is withdrawing from the market and how much it would affect its sales in India. "Our main focus is to win the trust of customer," Bulcke said.
When asked for comments on the FSSAI ordering Nestle to recall nine variants of Maggi instant noodles from market stating these were 'unsafe and hazardous', Bulcke did not give a direct reply but said the company was "cooperating with authorities".
Read: Singapore suspend sale of Maggi noodles imported from India
He said the company has around 400 people working in laboratories doing testing of food samples all the time to ensure safety, and the number is 8,000 globally.
On whether the controversy has put doubt on Nestle about ease of doing business in India, Bulcke said: "We have been in India for over 100 years...Doing business in India is good and India is a good market for Nestle and that's why I am here."
Commenting on the presence of taste enhancer MSG in Maggi, he said Nestle doesn't use it as an additive and it came from natural ingredients. The company makes it clear by stating on its packaging that there was no added MSG, he added.
When asked if the company had failed in communicating properly over the issue, Bulcke said, "We have been in intense discussions with authorities, both at local and national level and it took long for the company to come" but if there is confusion "there's something wrong, so that's why we are here".
With Maggi brand ambassadors, including Amitabh Bachchan and Madhuri Dixit, also coming under fire during the controversy, Nestle India Senior Vice-President, Corporate Affairs, Sanjay Khajuria said the company would be "supportive" of them in the event of any case against them. Nestle India Managing Director Etienne Benet declined to put a timeline on how long the company would keep Maggi off the market.
He also did not comment on the impact of the controversy on the company's business, but said: "Of course, it is a difficult time to go through."
Seven states in the country have banned Maggi: Delhi, Uttarakhand, Jammu and Kashmir, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Telangana. Singapore has also banned the instant noodles, with reports stating that the United Kingdom has also ordered a study into its ingredients.
