Madhya Pradesh Regulator Orders Patanjali to Recall Ghee Batch
New Delhi, October 24: The Madhya Pradesh Food and Drug Administration has asked Patanjali Foods Limited to pull a single batch of cow ghee off the market, marking another food safety concern for the company.
The company informed stock exchanges on Saturday that the regulatory action was linked to violations of food safety standards. It said the step followed the testing of a sample taken by the state regulator.
According to the company, the batch under review failed to meet the requirements set out under the Food Safety and Standards (Food Products Standards and Food Additives and Contaminants, Toxins and Residues) Regulations, 2011. The regulator then ordered the recall of that batch in Burhanpur district.
Despite the order, the company has said it is filing an appeal against the directive passed by the designated officer of the Madhya Pradesh FDA. Patanjali Foods has also indicated that the development is unlikely to have a major effect on its financial or operational business. According to the company, the impact will remain confined to the value of the particular cow ghee batch.
The company's statement read, "There is no significant impact on financial and operational activities, except for the value of that particular batch of cow ghee."
Stock market figures show that the company's share ended Friday at 351 rupees on the BSE, after slipping over 1 percent. In the last 52 weeks, the stock has recorded a high of 613.95 rupees and a low of 328.05 rupees. Its value has fallen by roughly 41 percent over one year and about 16 percent over three years. Over five years, though, the share has delivered a positive return of nearly 5 percent.
This is not the first time the company has been caught in a food safety dispute. In June, Patanjali Foods shares declined for five straight sessions when a batch of its jowar atta drew scrutiny. Food safety officials in Kannur district of Kerala had banned sales of that batch after detecting pesticide residues above the set limit.
Back then, the company also reported to regulators that it had received an order from the Kannur District Food Safety Office restricting a specific jowar atta batch. The fresh issue involving cow ghee has now added to the company's regulatory challenges.