Maggi Noodles Will Soon Make a Comeback, Says Minister Ram Vilas Paswan

Consumer Affairs Minister Ram Vilas Paswan on Thursday expressed confidence over Maggi making a comeback to the stores soon after the Goa government reiterating that it found the instant noodles safe for consumption for the third time.

"The latest tests conducted by the Central Food Technological Research Institute (CFTRI) has found Maggi safe. I have a gut feeling it will return to retail shelves soon," said Paswan.

"I am worried. After the Maggi ban, the perception of people changed. Foreign investors will also now think twice before investing in India. Our credibility is at stake," the minister said.

"We cannot take everything for granted. The whole Maggi episode is like what happens after the rains -- pots made of mud get destroyed, but utensils made from steel and brass shine. I hope Maggi will start shining again," Paswan told IANS.

The national food regulator, FSSAI, had on Wednesday said that Maggi maker Nestle India was not given a clean chit and insisted that its ban on the instant noodles was still effective.

Earlier, in June, the Goa FDA had sent five samples of Maggi noodles to Mysuru-based CFTRI for re-testing after the FSSAI said that the state regulator's findings were "questionable".

CFTRI, an institute approved by the FSSAI, has now found that the samples sent by the Goa food regulator did not contain lead above the permissible levels. The institute also did not find any trace of MSG, the Business Standard reported.

On 5 June, the FSSAI had ordered Nestle India to recall all available stocks of Maggi noodles after finding "harmful levels" of lead and monosodium glutamate (MSG) in tested samples.

Nestle India has challenged the FSSAI ban on Maggi noodles in the Bombay High Court. Last week, the court had asked Nestle India and the FSSAI to retest Maggi samples, raising hopes of some relief for the noodles maker.

Maggi noodles have been declared as safe to eat in many countries, such as the UK, Singapore and Canada, in sharp contrast to the FSSAI's findings as "hazardous for human consumption".