As popular Indian spice brand—MDH is facing heat for alleged contamination in some of its products, a report has surfaced stating since 2021 the brand has seen an average 14.5 percent of its US shipments rejected due to the presence of bacteria.
Last month, Hong Kong suspended three spice products made by MDH and one by another company Everest, for allegedly containing high levels of a cancer-causing pesticide—ethylene oxide.
Ethylene oxide increases cancer risk with long exposure.
In their reaction, both MDH and Everest have said their products are safe. MDH has said it does not use ethylene oxide at any stage of storing, processing, or packing of spices. Both MDH and Everest are popular in India and are also exported globally.
India is the world's biggest spice producer and is also the largest consumer and exporter of spices.
As per the Reuters report, India's domestic market was worth $10.44 billion in 2022, and the Spices Board said India exported products worth $4 billion during 2022-23.
Before the contamination row, MDH, which is a family-run Indian company of more than 100 years old, were rejected for sale in the United States due to the presence of salmonella, a bacteria that can lead to gastrointestinal illness, the report said.
“Around 20%, or 13 of MDH's 65 shipments to the United States were rejected after it failed checks for salmonella between October 2023 - when the current fiscal year started - and May 3,” the report quoted the latest available data compiled by Reuters from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
As per the report, the FDA did not state what quantity was contained in each shipment but the 13 shipments rejected included mixed spices and seasonings, as well as fenugreek.
“In fiscal 2022-23, about 15% of 119 MDH shipments were rejected mostly for salmonella contamination, while the rejections stood at 8.19% during 2021-22,” the report quoting the data said.
On the other hand Everest has had fewer rejections in the US with just one of 450 shipments in the ongoing 2023-24 year having been rejected so far for salmonella, the report mentioned.
“Around 3.7% of Everest's U.S. shipments were halted in 2022-23 and there were no rejections in the 189 shipments to the US the year before,” the report said.
The report said US FDA and the Spices Board have been inspecting MDH and Everest facilities for compliance with quality standards, but the results have not yet been made public.
The report mentioned in 2019, “a few batches of MDH's spice mix were taken off the shelves in the US for salmonella contamination and in 2023, the FDA recalled a few of Everest's products over similar findings and issued a public health alert.”
