India’s Food Safety and Drugs Administration (FSDA) declared energy drink Red Bull, unsafe for consumption.
A sample seized from Meerut based Best Price Store, owned by Walmart India was sent to laboratory for testing six months ago.
The sample was found to be ‘misbranded’ and ‘misleading’ by the Lucknow laboratory.
Red Bull challenged this report upon which the sample for sent for a second tests at a referral laboratory in Kolkata.
The report arrived on Tuesday which concludes that besides ‘misbranding’ and ‘misleading’, the product is unsafe for consumption due to high levels of caffeine which are beyond permissible limit.
"We had collected a sample of Red Bull from Best Price shop in Meerut six months ago and sent it to the Lucknow laboratory for checking, where it was found 'misbranded' and 'misleading'. The report was challenged by Red Bull and samples were further sent to the Kolkata laboratory - the referral lab. The report that arrived on Tuesday from Kolkata found that besides 'misbranding' and 'misleading', the caffeine levels in the drink were higher than the permissible limits and was thus declared as 'unsafe'," said JP Singh, chief food safety officer was quoted saying.
According to The Times of India, The Food Safety and Standards (Food Products and Food Additive) Regulations, 2011, allows a limit of 145 parts per million (ppm) of caffeine in carbonated beverages, but 'energy' drink manufacturers have a cap of 320 ppm. The lab test of Red Bull samples found 382 ppm caffeine in the drink.
The FSDA team has seized the entire stock of Red Bull from the Best Price Store following the report outcome.
Red Bull, in an official statement to TOI, said, "Red Bull energy drink is in compliance with all local food safety regulation standards. It is available in more than 166 countries and fully complies with regulations from the authorities in India and wherever it is on sale."
