India’s MDH says its spices are safe after quality allegations

BENGALURU – Indian spice maker MDH said its products are safe for consumption, and that the company has not received any communication from regulators and authorities in Hong Kong or Singapore about alleged contamination in its products.

Hong Kong this month suspended sales of three MDH spice mixes and an Everest spice mix for fish curries.

Singapore has also ordered a recall of Everest spice mix because it contains high levels of ethylene oxide, which is unfit for human consumption and poses a risk of cancer with long-term exposure.

“We assure our buyers and consumers that we do not use ethylene oxide at any stage of the storage, processing or packaging of our spices,” MDH said in a statement on Sunday.

Reuters reported on Saturday that the US Food and Drug Administration was collecting information about MDH and Everest products.

MDH and Everest herbs are among the most popular in India and are also sold in Europe, Asia and North America.

Following the steps in Hong Kong and Singapore, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) is monitoring the quality standards of the two companies.

India’s Spices Board, the government’s spice export regulator, requested data on MDH and Everest exports from authorities in Hong Kong and Singapore, and worked with the companies to find the “root cause” of the quality problems when inspections began at their factories. .

MDH said India’s FSSAI and Spices Board have not received any communication or testing report from authorities in Hong Kong or Singapore.

This reinforces that the allegations against MDH are baseless, baseless and not supported by any concrete evidence, the statement said.

Everest has previously said its spices are safe for consumption.