FSSAI verifies McDonald's India uses 100% real cheese: Westlife Foodworld

FSSAI said in a release that the verification confirms after its assertion that it uses 100 per cent real cheese and not its substitute

Next time you step into the McDonald’s outlet in your neighbourhood, you can rest assured that the cheese in your burger is real.

Westlife Foodworld, which operates McDonald’s in South and West India, has had its cheese verified as ‘100 per cent real’ by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

According to a statement issued by the company, the verification affirms its claim of using 100 per cent real cheese and not its substitute.

This comes after the Food & Drug Administration of Maharashtra suspended the licence of McDonald’s outlet in Ahmednagar, for allegedly using cheese substitutes instead of real cheese in its food items.

The outlet’s licence was suspended in November last year. Following that, Westlife Foodworld changed the name of its cheese dishes in Maharashtra to remove the word cheese from its menu.

McDonald’s India (West & South) has also received the results of the tests conducted by the National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories (NABL) accredited lab, which confirms the use of 100 per cent real cheese across all its products.

“The clean chit we have received from FSSAI, India’s apex food safety standards regulator, affirms that our products contain 100 per cent real cheese. All our products are crafted with genuine, quality ingredients without any compromises whatsoever,” said Saurabh Kalra, Managing Director, McDonald's India (West & South) in a statement.

The company said it sources ingredients from globally recognised and approved suppliers, and maintains the highest level of food quality. All suppliers of the company conduct rigorous testing of products twice a year by independent NABL-accredited food testing labs to ensure customer satisfaction.