FSSAI says McDonald’s India uses 100% real cheese, stock surges 7%

Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), which is the food regulatory body in India, has said that McDonald’s India uses 100 per cent real cheese. In a stock exchange filing, Westlife Foodworld (initially  Westlife Development)  said FSSAI's verification confirms the company's assertion that it uses 100% Real Cheese. Westlife Foodworld is McDonald’s biggest Indian franchisee.

"The verification confirms the brand’s assertion that it uses 100% Real Cheese and that it does not use any cheese analogues or substitutes in any of its products," the company said.

The apex food safety standards regulator of the country, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) under the administration of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India, has verified the cheese used by McDonald’s India as ‘100% Real Cheese’. The verification confirms the brand’s assertion that it uses 100% Real Cheese and that it does not use any cheese analogues or substitutes in any of its products," said Westlife Foodworld in a stock exchange filing.

"The confirmation from the FSSAI explicitly states that “Articles in question contain Cheese or cheese product as a part of the composition and does not contain analogue in the dairy context in any form”. This clean chit is a testament to McDonald’s India’s commitment to upholding stringent food quality standards across all its restaurants, at all times," the popular fast food firm said.

The conpany said the west and south zones of McDonald's India have also received results of tests done by an NABL-accredited lab, confirming the use of 100 per cent real cheese across its products.

Westlife Foodworld operates a chain of McDonald's restaurants in West and South India. It handles close to 380 units across 62 cities in Telangana, Gujarat, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Chhattisgarh, Andhra Pradesh, Goa, Madhya Pradesh and Puducherry.

Charges surfaced against Westlife Foodworld after it was alleged that one of the outlets in Maharashtra reportedly used substitutes in place of real cheese in burgers and nuggets. Following this, the state government announced an inspection into the allegations.

Thereafter, the Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration (FDA) revoked the licence of a McDonald’s outlet in the state’s Ahmednagar district after taking action against it over cheese. 

The FDA)accused McDonald's of using cheese analogues without proper disclosure, potentially misleading consumers into believing they were consuming real cheese. The state FDA urged the fast-food chain to implement corrective measures not only at the local level but also on a broader scale, possibly extending nationally.

Following the suspension of the license of a McDonald's outlet in Ahmednagar, the term "cheese" was removed from various menu items. However, the license suspension was later revoked.

Also read: Maharashtra FDA exposes McDonald's over food quality and standards, accuses it of using cheap vegetable oil instead of cheese

Also read: McDonald’s to use Google’s generative AI but will it make your burgers, fries fresher and hotter?