Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX) is pulling some of its syrups from the Indian market despite scares of an impending food shortage in the country.
Starbucks decided to follow up with the move after the Indian Food Safety and Standards Authority rejected the ingredients in the products. The food and safety inspectors disapproved many of the company’s standard flavorings. According to reports, the Indian Authority placed a ban on products from Starbucks and a few other companies on the basis of risk and safety, though it did not disclose particular details to explain further on the matter.
Following the negative analysis from the authority, the firm decided to take the particular action, a move that has brought more concern on the food situation. Additionally tensions are rising between foreign processed foods companies dealing with global brands and the Indian regulators. Only recently, the same regulatory body placed a ban on the famous instant noodles produced by Nestle SA.
At the beginning of the week, Avani Davda, the CEO of Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX) India wrote a letter to assure the company’s clients that the foods and beverages served at the company’s outlets are safe. In the letter, he also stated that the company is working closely with the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India. This cooperation is supposed to offer a compelling reason for the authority to re-approve the rejected syrups. The letter was posted on the company’s website.
Some of the rejected products include caramel sauce and hazelnut syrup, “Panna Cotta Pudding,” and cheese-flavored syrup. Mr. Davda also added that the company will be able to go around the rejected products by coming up with alternatives.
The regulatory body has grown more sensitive to the safety of international and local brands. They claimed that they found high and unsafe levels of lead in the Maggi 2-Minute noodles from Nestle during the inspections carried out last month. Nestle, however, maintained that the product was safe for consumption. However, the company pulled their product from the market.
