Nestle India Faces Legal Action Over Infant Formula Claims

India’s food regulator said it has initiated legal action against Nestle India Ltd. for breaching infant nutrition marketing rules and for substandard manufacturing.

The company’s promotional material for Nan Excella Pro Stage 1 and Lactogen Pro Stage 1 claims to contain “whey Protein” and “5 HMOs” natural sugars, violating the rules that restrict such messaging to boost sales of baby food, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India said in an Instagram post Friday. It has sought clarification from the Gurugram-based unit of the Swiss foodmaker.

FSSAI also found a sample of the firm’s follow-up formula “sub-standard” for its Biotin content, it said, adding that legal action has been initiated against Nestle India “over several non-compliances pertaining to the Food Safety and Standards Act.”

Nestle shares reversed early gains to fall as much as 2.8% after the announcement compared to an advance in the benchmark Nifty 50 Index.

“Our products are fully compliant with all the applicable regulations,” a company spokesperson said, adding that the two infant formulas and their labels were approved by an expert committee at FSSAI.

Nestle has submitted a detailed response regarding statements appearing on the labels, “which are factual in nature, and supported by scientific literature,” the spokesperson said.

The probe against Nestle India highlights the nationwide crackdown on malpractices in the food industry in recent months. The national regulator has proposed warning labels indicating sugar, salt and fat content in packaged food for makers of soda to chocolate and chips.