Bombay High Court Rules in Favour of Nestle in the Maggi Controversy

The Bombay High Court has ruled in favour of Nestle in the Maggi ban controversy, where the food safety watchdog had said that the instant noodles contained excess levels of lead. The court said the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) would need to justify its ban, and ordered fresh tests at certain court-chosen laboratories. If those tests are clear, Nestle could return its noodles to India's shelves.The court said that the laboratories where the tests were performed were not authorised. It has allowed Nestle to send five samples of each variant of noodles for fresh testing to three labs in Punjab, Hyderabad and Jaipur, which were accredited with National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories (NABL). These samples would be taken out of the 750 samples preserved by the company following the ban. A huge stock of Maggi noodles was destroyed by Nestle after the ban was imposed by the food regulators. If lead content is found below permissible limit by the three labs, Nestle will be allowed to manufacture Maggi noodles, said the judges.The labs have been asked to submit their report within six weeks.(USFDA Says Lead in Maggi Within Acceptable Levels)Nestle withdrew the noodles from Indian stores in June after the worst packaged food scare in a decade, but the company has consistently disputed regulators' findings, saying its own tests proved the noodles are safe.Lawyers acting for the food safety regulator said they would now appeal to the Supreme Court within six weeks. Separately, the government earlier this week filed a lawsuit against Nestle's Indian unit, seeing $99 million in damages on behalf of consumers, citing unfair trade practices and the sale of defective goods.(Bombay High Court Allows Nestle India to Export Maggi Noodles)FSSAI had issued the order banning Maggi noodles on June 5th this year, while Maharashtra's FDA had issued a similar order the next day. During a previous hearing in the court, Justices Kanade and Colabawala had asked both the sides to give their consent for fresh independent test.However, the parties could not arrive at a consensus to the suggestion mooted by the HC which today ordered fresh tests.(FSSAI Justifies Ban on Maggi Noodles, Says Lead Was Beyond Permissible Limit)Nestle's lawyer Iqbal Chhagla had earlier said the company was agreeable to the suggestion, but the tests should be conducted in the presence of a renowned scientist and the samples available with the company should be used.Darius Khambata, appearing for FDA, had contended that one of the samples must be from the lot collected by the state FDA.(Nestle India Fights Back, Files Petition Against FSSAI & FDA Maharashtra)For us, consumer interest is most important...this litigation may go on but we feel that the issue should be resolved amicably and, therefore we suggested the parties to agree to a fresh independent test," the bench observed.The Nestle lawyer alleged that FSSAI and FDA had violated followed principles of natural justice by not giving a hearing to the company before banning nine variants of Maggi noodles on the ground of lead content in these products were in excess of the permissible limit. Also, though only three variants were tested, the regulators banned all nine variants of Maggi noodles, Chhagla had argued.(FSSAI Seizes 200 Quintals of Maggi from Lucknow Warehouse)He had said there was no substance in FSSAI's allegation about the company destroying evidence by burning Maggi stock."On the contrary, we have acted on the instructions of the food regulators by destroying Maggi product," he said.The judges refused to grant stay on their order on a plea made by food regulators. They said the company had given an undertaking that it would not manufacture or sell Maggi noodles till the results of the three labs were received. "The fresh tests would also take some time. Hence, there
was no need to grant a stay on the order," the judges saidSources Reuters and PTI