Government of Maharashtra Orders Testing Of Haldiram Products After US Ban

The Maharashtra government has directed the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to test all its food products in the state after reports emerged that many Haldiram products have been banned in the United States. // Haldiram, the Nagpur-based leading domestic snack-maker in India received reports from the USFDA that high levels of pesticides, mold and salmonella were found in the packaged snack food imported from India.

Vidya Thakur, Minister of State for FDA directed Harshdeep Kamble, FDA commissioner, to collect samples of Haldiram’s products from all over the state and test it.

“This is a very serious matter. Since Haldiram’s products are manufactured in the state and consumed by a large number of people, it is necessary to find out if the snacks are fit for human consumption,” said Thakur.

Haldiram’s, which was once a close-knit family enterprise, subsequently branched out due to the heirs of founder Gangabisan Agarwal parting ways.

The mishap may be due to the lack of clarity on the geographical boundaries of the branched out family enterprise, which continues to use the brand name Haldiram’s.

For instance, in Maharashtra products of both Haldiram’s Nagpur, which have a yellow logo, and Haldiram’s Bhujiwala of Delhi, which have a red logo, are available. There are also sweets available of Haldiram’s Kolkata. All of them export their products to over 50 countries.

One of the rejected food lists on the USFDA website reveals the location of manufacturer as Haldiram’s snacks Pvt Ltd in Noida, Uttar Pradesh.

Source-Medindia