Cadbury may soon be under investigation by the joint parliamentary committee set up to examine the presence of pesticides in beverages, including soft drinks.
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He also briefed the media about the JPC's meetings with industry chambers as well as representatives of the Central Food Technological Research Institute, Mysore, and the Central Food Laboratory, Kolkata, over the last two days.
When contacted, Bharat Puri, managing director, Cadbury India, said, "We have not yet received any intimation on this front. It will, therefore, be difficult for the company to comment on the issue at this point of time."
Worms were recently detected in some Cadbury chocolate samples in Maharashtra following a complaint filed by a consumer. While the Maharashtra government has launched an investigation into the matter, the company has said it could have happened due to improper storage by the retailer.
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It has since initiated a revamp of the product's packaging and started a campaign to educate distributors and retailers about proper storage of chocolates.
Cadbury has also come out with a communication campaign in newspapers saying its chocolates are safe and consumers should not shy away from buying them during the ongoing festive season.
Yesterday, the Kerala government also banned the sale of two batches each of Cadbury and Nestle chocolates after worms were detected in them.
The worms controversy has resulted in a spurt in sales of chocolates by Cadbury's rivals like Amul, which could result in a swing in shares in the 24,000 tonne per annum market. Amul has reported a large increase in its chocolate sales after the controversy broke out.
