MDH dismisses allegations of pesticide contamination as 'baseless' and 'unsubstantiated'

MDH, a popular Indian spice brand offering a wide range of ground spices widely used in India and around the world, has refutedclaims of the presence of pesticide ethylene oxide in its products as"baseless" and "unsubstantiated".

The brand vehemently refuted these allegations in a statement released on Saturday (Apr 27) andassured its consumers of the absolute safety of its products.

"MDH reassures its buyers and customers about the safety and quality of all its products" the company noted while pointing out that it has not received any official communication from the food safety regulators in Hong Kong or Singapore regarding the matter.

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"This reinforces the fact that the allegations against MDH are baseless, unsubstantiated, and not backed by any concrete evidence," the statement added.

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This rebuttal follows concerns raised by the Hong Kong and Singapore food safety regulators earlier this month over certain MDH and Everest spice products.

The flagged products by Hong Kong include MDH's Madras Curry Powder, Everest Fish Curry Masala, MDH Sambhar MasalaMixed Masala Powder, and MDH Curry Powder Mixed Masala Powder. Singapore has gone as far as ordering a recall of Everest spice mix due to purported contamination of ethylene oxide.

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The company also underscored its commitment to quality and safety standards both domestically and internationally. MDH dismissed the allegations as "untrue" and reassured buyers and consumers that "we do not use Ethylene Oxide (ETO) at any stage of storing, processing, or packing our spices."

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"MDH tagline, 'Asli Masale Sach Sach, MDH MDH' and 'Real Spices of India' reflect our genuine commitment to providing authentic, high-quality spices to customers," the statement read.

Meanwhile, following the announcement by India's Spices Board that it is collaborating with exporters to identify the "root cause of the issue and suggest corrective measures" regarding recalled products, MDH stated that neither the board nor FSSAI has received any communication or test reports from Hong Kong or Singapore concerning this matter.

This comes as US' FDA spokesperson told Reuters that the country "is aware of the reports and is gathering additional information about the situation."

(With inputs from agencies)