Diageo has agreed to make changes to the recipes of some of its spirits in India after the local federal regulator banned the sale of some of its products. Two unnamed government sources told yesterday (17 August) the business had agreed to make alterations to some of its whisky and rum products. India's food safety watchdog the FSSAI is also going to agree to drop its sales ban on Diageo's products "on this understanding", the source added.
Earlier this month, the FSSAI banned the sale of spirits made by companies including Diageo's Indian business United Spirits, claiming the products did not comply with rules on flavours and age-related claims. Not long after, United Spirits said it was taking the FSSAI to court over the authority banning the sale of its McDowell's No. 1 rum. In a statement, a Diageo spokesperson said: "Our products have consistently met all applicable safety and quality standards.
"We have engaged with FSSAI on their position of the existing guidelines and have since taken appropriate measures to align our products fully with the revised requirements. "Diageo India remains committed to the highest standards of compliance and consumer safety." When announcing the sales ban earlier this month, the FSSAI said the decision was made after laboratory testing found artificial or "nature-identical flavours" had been added to some rum and whisky products. "The present matter… concerns the practice adopted by certain manufacturers of adding the flavour of the standardised alcoholic beverage itself, for instance, the addition of rum flavour in rum or whisky flavour in whisky," the regulator said.
The FSSAI implemented the ban on several spirits companies' products in the country. These included United Spirits for its McDowell's No. 1 rum and its Antiquity Blue and Royal Challenge whiskies. It also named Inbrew Beverages in Madhya Pradesh for its Bagpiper Deluxe whisky and Old Cask deluxe XXX rum, as well as Associated Alcohols & Breweries in the same state.
The group also said it implemented the ban on Mohan Rocky Springwater for three of its Old Monk rums and that inspections and sampling were carried out at Mandexi Distilleries & Breweries' premises in Goa. Last week, Associated Alcohols & Breweries secured interim relief against the FSSAI's sales ban. "Diageo complies with India regulator following rebuke over flavouring" was originally created and published by Just Drinks, a GlobalData owned brand.
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