India finds Nestle baby food sample substandard, takes legal action

​India's food regulator on Friday ‌said it ​found a Nestle baby food sample substandard in testing and has begun legal action against ‌the company, the latest multinational to fall foul of the country's food safety drive.

Indian authorities found a sample of "follow-up formula", which is a milk product for infants, "sub-standard ‌with respect to biotin" food additive, the Food Safety and Standards Authority ‌of India (FSSAI) said in a social media post. The FSSAI has also filed cases over two other Nestle baby food products, NAN Excella Pro Stage 1, and Lactogen Pro ⁠1, ​for making misleading claims ⁠in breach of regulations, it said.

Nestle did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Shares ⁠in Nestle India fell as much as 2.8% on Friday.

Indian authorities have ​launched a crackdown on food adulteration and advertisements in recent months and ⁠has proposed stricter labelling norms for packaged food items. They have also stepped up scrutiny ⁠of ​food business operators and have shut down some outlets of Domino's, Pizza Hut and McDonald's. Nestle previously sparred with the food regulator in 2015, when ⁠authorities banned its popular Maggi noodles nationwide over alleged excess lead levels and ⁠labelling lapses, ⁠triggering a massive recall. Maggi later returned to shelves after fresh tests.