
A recent incidence of food poisoning, leading to the death of a 10 year old boy in Uttar Pradesh, has sparked a major controversy. It has been alleged that the young boy, along with his family members, fell ill after consuming Maggi noodles. While the boy has died, six of the family members are hospitalised and are being treated in a private facility near UP’s Pilbhit.
While the shocking incident has raised questions over the quality of the popular instant noodles from food & beverages major Nestle India, the company has refuted the claims. In response to Business Today’s queries, a Nestlé India spokesperson said that the product in question is not Maggi noodles.
“We have read in the media about the extremely sad and unfortunate incident of a family suffering from food poisoning and a 10 year old child losing his life. On the basis of our investigations, we can confirm with confidence and assure our valued consumers that the product under reference is not Maggi noodles,” the company spokesperson said in reply.
According to sources, as soon as the incidence came to light, Nestle India launched a detailed probe into the matter. Upon its investigation, it was found that the family had not consumed Maggi instant noodles. Instead, they may have consumed a similar product from another manufacturer.
In response to BT’s queries, the Nestle India spokesperson further said, “Safety of our consumers and quality of our products is of utmost importance to us. We have a robust process in place for quality and safety from procuring raw materials for our products till its final production.”
After the incident that occurred near Rahul Nagar area in Hazara, Pilbhit, has resulted in severe food poisoning for six family members, apart from the death of the young boy. It is alleged that they had consumed the instant noodles along with rice.
However, with Nestle India coming up with its probe report that states it was not Maggi noodles was consumed by the family, only a detailed probe by the authorities may throw some light on what may have caused the unfortunate incident.