Are You Playing With Your Health? Bournvita To Maggi: Food Products Surrounded With Controversies

Bournvita

The government recently on April 10, issued an advisory asking ecommerce companies to remove Bournvita from portals health drinks category. The move came after a probe by the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights after it received complaints over the high sugar content of the product.

Patanjali

The Ayurveda products company owned by Yoga Guru Baba Ramdev. The contempt case arises out of a petition filed by the Indian Medical Association against Patanjalis advertisements attacking allopathy and making claims about curing certain diseases.

Maggi

The 2-minute noodles surrounded in controversies in after it was reported that samples of Maggi Noodles had high levels of monosodium glutamate (MSG) apart from high lead content above the permissible level. However, the packets did not indicate MSG labeled on the packet.

Dhara

Samples of some branded edible oils like Dhara were found to be adulterated in 1998 with toxic argemon mexican oil, believed to cause the fatal dropsy disease. The National Dairy Development Board, which manufactured Dhara, temporarily stopped sale of even refined oil, though there was an issue only with unrefined mustard oil.

Rasna

Rasna, is not new name for people, everyone has childhood memories with the instant drink powder. The maker Rasna was hit by a controversy surrounding brominated vegetable oil (unfit for human consumption) in the early nineties following which there was ban.

Domino's

A couple of years back, Dominos Bengaluru outlet was trolled for a picture that got surfaced on social media, where cleaning mop brushes and clothes of employees were hanging just above the trays of pizza dough in the kitchen. Everyones favorite faced backlash for hygiene and quality.

Coke-Pepsi

The Centre for Science and Environment, in 2003 revealed that Indian soft drink producers, including Pepsi and Coke, were using pesticides in their carbonated drinks, which have the potential to weaken the immune system and cause cancer. Both businesses faced criticism for operating bottling factories in Kerala that polluted and depleted the water supply, endangering public health and negatively impacting agricultural output.

List Is Long

The list does not end here, KFC chicken, Subway sandwich, McDonalds Burger, Haldiram’s aloo bhujia, PepsiCo’s Lay’s potato chips and many other leading brands have been accused for misleading public through wrong claims.

Are We Really Consuming The Right Food Product?

In essence, the controversies served as a reminder of the need for critical thinking and scrutiny in evaluating marketing claims, particularly in the realm of health and nutrition. It emphasized the importance of transparency, scientific rigor, and regulatory oversight in ensuring consumer trust and well-being.