DHAKA: Swiss multinational food company Nestle revealed that it will destroy more than £32 million ($50 million) worth of its popular Maggi noodles in India after the country's food safety regulator said the products were ‘unsafe and hazardous.”

Nestle, which claims 80% of the Indian instant noodles market since it arrived with the Maggi brand in 1983, said in a statement that the noodles are safe and is challenging the ban.

Nestle said it will remove the noodles from India's shelves in the meantime while a BBC report said it was destroying the produce.

"There will be additional costs to take into account, for example bringing stock from the market, transporting the stock to the destruction points, destruction cost etc. The final figure will have to be confirmed at a later date," said Nestle in a statement, as reported by the BBC.

On June 5, India's Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) imposed the ban on Nestle's Maggi noodles after it allegedly found higher-than-allowed levels of lead in some packets.

Nestle said that the ban "raised issues of interpretation" in India's food safety laws and is challenging the decision in the Mumbai high court. Nestle also requested to see the results of the laboratory tests.

Nestle's global chief executive Paul Bulcke promised to return Maggi to store shelves soon.

BDST: 1533 HRS, JUNE 16, 2015
AKA