Maggi noodles ordered off India's shelves

Maggi noodles have been ordered off shop shelves in India after they were found to contain unsafe levels of lead.

Maggi noodles hang on display at a shop in New Delhi

Maggi noodles have been ordered off shelves in India after they were found with unsafe lead levels. (AAP)

Indian shopkeepers have withdrawn a popular brand of Nestle instant noodles from their shelves after tests revealed the snack contained unsafe levels of lead.

India's states have either ordered the withdrawal of Maggi noodles from shops or are carrying out further tests on noodle samples before taking action in conjunction with the federal government.

Maggi sales have plunged in India since laboratory tests showed the noodles contained lead at levels far higher than the legal maximum.

On Tuesday, the Delhi city government said it had conducted tests on 13 samples of Maggi noodles and 10 were found to be unsafe with lead exceeding the allowable level.

In a statement earlier this week, Nestle India said the noodles were safe to eat and lead levels were well within limits.

The Delhi government said it will take legal action against Nestle India, which is a subsidiary of Swiss-based Nestle SA, and was meeting on Wednesday with company officials.

It banned the sale of Maggi noodles in all state-run stores in the Indian capital. Several major grocery chains in the city have also announced that they are taking the noodles off shelves.

The noodles are Nestle's fastest selling food item in India, clocking around 15 billion rupees ($240 million) in sales annually.

Spurred by the Maggi noodle scare, India's federal government is readying a new law to deal with cases in which consumers of essential commodities and foods are misled through wrong information.


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Source: AAP


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Maggi noodles ordered off India's shelves | SBS News