FSSAI verifies McDonald’s India uses 100% real cheese: Westlife Foodworld
safefoodmitra.com · 2024-03-05 21:35:05
India's food regulatory body Food Safety and Standards Authority of India(FSSAI) has confirmed that McDonald’s India uses 100% real cheese, Westlife Foodworld said in a stock exchange intimation on Tuesday.
"The verification confirms the brand’s assertion that it uses 100% Real Cheese and that it does not use any cheese analogues or substitutes in any of its products," the company said.
Further, the west and south zone of McDonald’s India has also received results of tests done by an NABL-accredited lab, confirming use of 100 per cent real cheese across its products, Westlife said.
McDonald's fake cheese saga
Westlife Foodworld came under scanner recently after one of the outlets reportedly used substitutes in place of real cheese in burgers and nuggets at an outlet in Maharashtra, following which the state government announced an inspection.
"We are planning to check all outlets of McDonald's," Abhimanyu Kale, the FDA chief told Reuters. "We will also take action on other well-known and frequently visited global fast-food chain outlets," he added, but declined to identify the brands being targeted.
Saurabh Kalra, Managing Director of Westlife, the company overseeing McDonald's operations in west and south India, has addressed concerns raised by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Kalra affirmed the company's cooperation with any inspections, asserting that McDonald's maintains the "highest standards."
The FDA had taken action by suspending the license of a McDonald's outlet in Ahmednagar. This led to the removal of the term "cheese" from various menu items. However, the license suspension was later revoked.