A food authority in India will look into whether Nestle introduced “excess” sugar to infant goods

The Food Safety and Standards Authority (FSSAI) has been ordered by the consumer protection agency, the CCPA, to investigate the allegation made by Public Eye and International Infant Food Action Network, a Swiss non-governmental organization, that Nestle was marketing infant products with increased sugar content in developing nations such as India.

Nidhi Khare, the head of the Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) and Consumer Affairs Secretary, said, “We have written to the FSSAI to take cognizance of the report on Nestle’s baby product.” The FSSAI has received a notification from the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR), which has also acknowledged receiving the report.

As opposed to markets in Europe, Nestle supplied infant goods with a greater sugar content in less developed South Asian nations, such as India, as well as those in Africa and Latin America, according to research by the Swiss non-governmental organization Public Eye and the International Infant Food Action Network. On Thursday, Nestle India said that, during the previous five years, it has decreased the amount of added sugar in infant food products in India by more than 30%, depending on the variety. The company had never compromised on compliance. For Nestle India, cutting down on added sugars is a top focus. We have already lowered added sugars by up to 30% during the last five years, depending on the variety, a firm representative said.

The representative emphasized that compliance was a crucial aspect of Nestle India and said, “We will never compromise on that.” We also make sure that our goods, which are made in India, strictly adhere to local specifications (where necessary) and CODEX standards, which are set by the WHO and FAO and include all nutritional needs, including added sugars.

In the UK and Germany, Nestle’s wheat-based baby food Cerelac, is offered without any added sugars; nevertheless, an analysis of 15 Cerelac products from India revealed an average of 2.7 grams of added sugar per serving. According to the research, the sugar content was disclosed on the package in India.

Six grams of sugar was the product’s maximum level in Thailand. According to the research, sugar content in five out of the eight samples tested in the Philippines was found to be 7.3 grams, and the information was not even disclosed on the container.