Shopkeepers take Maggi off shelves

Visakhapatnam: Following the state government’s ban on Maggi noodles at the instructions of the National Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), all grocery stores in Vizag, including retail giants and the street-corner kirana shops, have taken Maggi noodles off the shelves. Some retail chains went a step forward and withdrew all brands of noodles.

When inquired about the availability of Maggi noodles, S. Jagannadham, a local kirana shop owner, said that the Maggi stockists have withdrawn Maggi noodles from their stores on Monday morning. Some other retailers also replied along the same lines, declining the availability of Maggi. In a preliminary test at state laboratory in Gorakhpur and a subsequent test at Central Food Laboratory in Kolkata, most of the ‘two-minute noodle’ samples were found to have more than permissible levels of lead and monosodium glutamate (MSG) which can harm the health when excessively ingested.

Though Nestle India reiterates that they don’t add MSG to Maggi and the lead levels in the Maggi are well within the limits, many state governments resorted to a ban, including Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.

Retail giants in Vizag have also barred the sales of Maggi immediately following the government’s orders and some even withdrew all brands of noodles. Sampath, a retail market manager, said “They stopped selling all varieties of Maggi noodles immediately following the orders and continue to do so until further orders are received.” Many studies in the past revealed that the increased consumption of lead or MSG can cause many health ailments, including learning and behavioural disorders in children.