Westlife Foodworld says FSSAI verifies McDonald’s India uses 100% real cheese; stock jumps over 6%
Westlife Foodworld, which operates a chain of McDonald’s restaurants in west and south India, on Tuesday said that the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has verified the cheese used by McDonald’s India as ‘100% Real Cheese’.
Westlife Foodworld shares jumped more than 6% after the verification from FSSAI. The stock gained as much as 6.6% to ₹785.00 apiece on the BSE.
The confirmation from the FSSAI explicitly states that “Articles in question contain Cheese or cheese product as a part of the composition and does not contain analogue in dairy context in any form”, Westlife Foodworld said in a regulatory filing.
Along with this, McDonald’s India (West & South) received the results of the tests conducted by NABL (National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories) accredited lab yesterday, also confirming the use of 100% Real Cheese across its products, it added.
Pursuant to the clean chit, McDonald’s India (W&S) has retained the term “cheese” in the names of its products containing cheese.
The QSR firm had earlier temporarily removed the word “cheese” from its menu in Maharashtra following allegations that the fast food chain uses cheese substitutes in some burgers and nuggets.
Read here: McDonald’s moves ‘cheese’ from its Maharashtra outlet menus
“The clean chit we have received from FSSAI, India’s apex food safety standards regulator, affirms that our products contain 100% Real cheese, sourced from globally renowned suppliers. The recent tests conducted by NABL-accredited labs also validate this and the fact that our products do not contain any cheese analogues or substitutes,” said Saurabh Kalra, MD, McDonald’s India (W&S).
In the December quarter, Maharashtra’s Food & Drugs Administration (FDA) had suspended the licence of a McDonald’s outlet in Ahmednagar over claims that the chain’s McCheese burger is non-compliant with local food standards and is using cheese substitutes without proper labelling for several items listed on the menu.
At 2:50 pm, Westlife Foodworld shares were trading 6.45% higher at ₹783.60 apiece on the BSE.
Catch Stock Market Live Updates here
Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed – it’s all here, just a click away! Login Now!
Download Finplay News App to get Daily Market Updates & Live Business News.
More
Less
Published: 05 Mar 2024, 02:54 PM IST
Ganesh
http://ganesh@finplay.inFinance enthusiast, Mutual fund expert.