The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has initiated legal action against Nestle India Ltd for alleged violations of food safety regulations related to its infant nutrition products, the regulator said on Friday.
The action concerns promotional claims made for NAN Excella Pro Stage 1 and Lactogen Pro 1, as well as a follow-up formula that was found to have lower-than-prescribed Biotin content during laboratory testing.
FSSAI said it reviewed the products and promotional material available on e-commerce platforms and found certain claims related to the infant nutrition products.
In the case of NAN Excella Pro Stage 1, claims related to “5 HMOs” and “Whey Protein” were observed. For Lactogen Pro 1, a claim that “Whey Protein” was easy to digest was found, the regulator said.
FSSAI said it sought clarification from Nestle India regarding these claims.
According to the regulator, both products were found to be in violation of Regulation 4(2) of the FSS (Foods for Infant Nutrition) Regulations, 2020, which restricts promotional claims intended to increase the sale of infant foods.
The regulator also said the products violated Section 3 of the IMS Act, 1992, which prohibits the advertisement and promotion of infant foods.
Separately, a sample of Follow-up Formula manufactured by Nestle India was found to be sub-standard for its Biotin content during laboratory testing, FSSAI said.
The sample was later sent to a Referral Laboratory for re-analysis. The second test also found that the product did not meet the prescribed Biotin requirement under the Food Safety and Standards (Foods for Infant Nutrition) Regulations, 2020.
“In view of the above contraventions, three separate adjudication cases have been filed against M/s Nestle India Limited in respect of the three products,” FSSAI said.
Meanwhile, Nestle India shares were trading at around Rs 1,347 per share, down Rs 25, or 1.82 per cent, from the previous close of Rs 1,372 per share at the time of reporting.
