Noida:

The Food Safety and Drug Administration Department (FDA) officials collected samples from an outlet of McDonald’s in Noida Sector 18 and Theobroma bakery in Sector 104 following a complaint by a consumer who fell sick allegedly after consuming food items from these outlets, officials said on Monday.

The complaints were lodged with the Food Safety Connect portal of the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), officials said.

According to officials, the complaint against the McDonald’s outlet in Noida Sector 18 is that a consumer fell sick after consuming a burger and french fries from the outlet.

Following the complaint, a team of the Food Safety and Drug Administration (FDA), Gautam Buddh Nagar, immediately took action and visited McDonald’s at Noida Sector 18 to collect the samples.

“We got a complaint on the portal against McDonald’s. The customer fell ill after consuming aloo tikki and french fries. We have taken action in this regard and taken samples of palm oil, cheese, and mayonnaise…,” said Archana Dheeran, Assistant Commissioner (Food) FDA, Gautam Buddh Nagar.

In the second incident, a woman fell sick after consuming a stale cake ordered from Theobroma bakery in Noida Sector 104. Following the complaint, an FDA team collected samples of the cake after receiving the complaint.

“In another case, a complaint came against Theobroma bakery where someone fell ill (in Noida) after consuming stale cake from the bakery…We took a sample of the pineapple cake and sent it to the laboratory…If the product fails in the report, then a case will be registered,” Dheeran said.

She added that the report is expected to come within a month, and if samples fail in the report, then further course of action will be taken, and a case will be registered.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Tokyo:

He may be the world’s fourth-richest person and visiting gourmet paradise Japan, but Mark Zuckerberg is eating McDonald’s, according to photos posted on Tuesday by the Meta chief.

“Japanese McDonald’s: 10/10. Give these guys a Michelin star,” the 39-year-old said on Facebook and Instagram, alongside photos of himself in sunglasses eating a burger and of his wife Priscilla Chan outside the golden arches.

Seen on Zuckerberg’s packed tray were popular Japanese menu items including a shrimp-patty burger, a teriyaki chicken burger, edamame bean salad and bite-sized churros — along with the more usual chicken nuggets and fries.

Zuckerberg was in Japan with his family for a trip mixing pleasure — including skiing and making Japanese swords — and business.

After reportedly meeting with Facebook developers in Tokyo on Monday and Tuesday, Zuckerberg was set to travel to South Korea and then India for the wedding of a billionaire’s son.

In Seoul Zuckerberg is expected to hold meetings with President Yoon Suk Yeol and leaders of tech titans Samsung and LG, according to South Korean media.

He will also meet the CEO of LG Electronics to discuss the development of a mixed-reality headset to compete with Apple’s Vision Pro, the Korea Economic Daily reported.

Meta, Google and others have invested billions of dollars in Reliance’s digital unit Jio Platforms as it seeks to take on Amazon and Walmart in India’s vast e-commerce market.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Mumbai:

The Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has revoked the licence of a McDonald’s outlet in the state’s Ahmednagar district after taking action against it over cheese, an official said on Saturday.

The eatery belonging to the fast food giant had faced FDA scrutiny for allegedly using a “cheese-like” product in their dishes without indicating that it was actually a cheese substitute, thereby misleading customers, he said.

Following an inspection and subsequent objections, the licence of the outlet was suspended, but it was revoked recently after the chain filed a compliance report confirming that they had removed the word ‘cheese’ from product names.

“In October 2023, we visited the outlet in Kedgaon and discovered that the names of food items displayed at the outlet included American Cheese Burger, American Cheese Nuggets, Cheese Burger, Italian Cheesy Lava Burger, and Blueberry Cheese Cake. All these names are their brand names for their products,” said Rajendra Bade, a food safety official from FDA-Ahmednagar.

After analysing, Bade said, they found that instead of pure cheese, the joint was using a cheese-like product. “Technically, this is called a cheese analogue or cheese substitute. While pure cheese contains milk fat, the cheese analogue contains both milk fat and vegetable fat,” he said.

FDA then sought the fast food giant’s clarification over the presence of milk fat and vegetable fat in products advertised as containing cheese.

“Since their clarification was unsatisfactory, we suspended their licence in November last year. They appealed against the suspension before the FDA commissioner in Mumbai. The commissioner heard arguments from both sides and instructed the fast food restaurant chain that they cannot use the word ‘cheese’ in their product names if they are not using real cheese,” he said.

In the order, FDA Commissioner Abhimanyu Kale directed McDonald’s to revise their labelling and prominently tag the products as “cheese analogue nuggets” or “non-dairy cheese nuggets” in a font size and colour that is easily visible and distinguishable from regular cheese products.

The order also required the outlet to list the ingredients on the packaging, ensuring that the terms cheese analogue or non-dairy cheese are prominently displayed.

McDonald’s was further told to keep customers informed about the use of cheese analogues in certain products through signage, handouts, and explanations regarding the reasons for using cheese analogues.

In their compliance report, Bade said, the American company said that they had amended the labels. “Upon receiving their compliance report, a decision was made to revoke the suspension, and they have been granted permission to resume business as before,” Bade said.

Hardcastle Restaurant, a subsidiary of Westlife Foodworld Ltd, which has the franchisee rights to own and operate McDonald’s restaurants in west and south markets in India, said in its compliance report to the FDA that it had renamed certain products by removing the word ‘cheese’.

It listed the items as Cheesy Nuggets (now Veg Nuggets), Mc Cheese Veg Burger (now Cheddar Delight Veg Burger), Mc Cheese Veg Non Veg Burger (Cheddar Delight Non-Veg Burger), Corn and Cheese Burger (American Veg Burger), Grilled Chicken and Cheese Burger (American Non Veg-Burger), Blueberry Cheese Cake (Blueberry Cake), Cheesy Italian Veg Burger (Italian Veg Burger) and Cheesy Italian Chicken Burger (now Italian Chicken Burger).

Meanwhile, Hardcastle Restaurant said on Friday that it was engaging with the “competent authorities” in the FDA matter.

“We are actively engaging with the competent authorities on this issue and awaiting their final clarification. We have always been adhering to stringent food standards and are fully compliant with all applicable food laws,” said a statement from McDonald’s India (West & South) shared on BSE (Bombay Stock Exchange) by Westlife Foodworld.

“Amid recent reports about the removal of ‘Cheese’ from our menu at McDonald’s locations in Maharashtra, we want to assure our valued customers that only genuine, high-quality cheese is used in all our cheese-containing products,” the statement said.

It further said, “Collaborating with suppliers adhering to global standards ensures top-quality cheese in our product offerings and not cheese analogues or any substitute.” McDonald’s India (West & South) said, “Our commitment to transparency in our ingredients and dedication to providing delicious, high-quality meals to our customers remains unwavering.” 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Following a crackdown by Maharashtra’s Food and Drugs Administration (FDA), fast food giant McDonald’s has assured customers that it only uses “genuine, high-quality cheese” in its products. The FDA accused McDonald’s of deceptive practices related to the use of cheese substitutes in its items. It suspended the licence of a McDonald’s outlet in Ahmednagar, saying that its investigation found that the fast food chain was using cheese analogues or proprietary foods instead of cheese. 

“We got some complaints and feedback from customers that McDonald’s and other food chains should declare the ingredients in their food items in a proper manner on menu cards and display boards,” the agency’s Commissioner, Abhimanyu Kale, told NDTV Profit on Friday.

“In our inspection, we found out they were using cheese analogues or proprietary foods instead of cheese. After observations, the outlets were closed by inspectors,” Mr Kale added. 

The agency, which conducted a month-long investigation last year, found that McDonald’s was using cheaper cheese substitutes like vegetable oil in burgers and nuggets. It accused the fast food chain of using cheese alternatives in several items without proper labelling, thereby misleading customers into thinking they were eating real cheese. The FDA, therefore, suspended the license of the Ahmednagar outlet and demanded that it disclose the correct ingredients in its menus and display boards as per Food Safety and Standards Authority India norms. 

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This prompted the fast food chain to remove the term “cheese” from various products. Westlife Foodworld Limited, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Hardcastle Restaurants Private Limited and operator of McDonald’s chains in West and South India, also released a statement in response to the report.

“Only genuine, high-quality cheese is used in all our cheese-containing products,” Westlife said. “We are actively engaging with the competent authorities on this issue and awaiting their final clarification,” the McDonald’s operator said.

“We have always been adhering to stringent food standards and are fully compliant with all applicable food laws. Our commitment to transparency in our ingredients and dedication to providing delicious, high-quality meals to our customers remains unwavering,” the statement added. 

Notably, this incident has also prompted the FDA to consider investigating other fast-food chains for similar practices. In a statement, Mr Kale said that the FDA will continue inspections of food outlets to ensure they comply with regulatory guidelines in the interest of customers. If necessary, the state authorities will communicate with the FSSAI for any nationwide action, he said.