Do you know you are consuming Animal nails, sweat, eggshells, and even saliva under the green veg mark?
When shopping for food products in India, you’ve likely noticed the green and red marks on the packaging. The green mark indicates the product is vegetarian, while the red mark denotes it is non-vegetarian.
These marks guide millions of Indians in making food choices aligned with their dietary preferences, cultural values, and religious beliefs. Among these products, Maggi noodles stand out as a beloved household staple, often associated with warmth, nostalgia, and convenience. With its green mark, it is enthusiastically embraced by vegetarians and non-vegetarians alike. However, there’s a catch—what appears straightforward is actually far more complex and nuanced.
To fully understand the implications of these marks, we must delve into their origin, which dates back to a law enacted in the 1990s.
This legislation standardized the classification of food products into vegetarian and non-vegetarian categories, introducing the green and red symbols to help consumers distinguish between the two. However, the criteria for these classifications are not as clear-cut as one might assume.
Under this law, food or chemical products derived from animal by-products—such as nails, sweat, eggshells, and even saliva—can still be classified as vegetarian, provided they are not derived from the animal’s flesh. This means that substances derived indirectly from animals, even if they might raise ethical or dietary concerns for strict vegetarians, are still categorized as vegetarian under the law.
This creates a paradox for many consumers. For instance, ingredients that are acceptable to vegetarians by this legal definition may not align with their personal understanding of vegetarianism. A prime example is food products or seasonings prepared using traces of animal fat. For an individual, such a product would unequivocally be considered non-vegetarian. Yet, under the law, it may still qualify for the green mark.
Now, let’s bring this discussion back to Maggi noodles. Widely recognized as a vegetarian product due to its green label, it raises eyebrows among those aware of its formulation. Allegedly, certain Maggi products have been criticized for containing traces of pig fat, a revelation that shocks consumers who trust the green mark as a definitive guide to their dietary choices. This contradiction underscores the gap between legal classifications and consumer perceptions of vegetarianism.
Adding to this concern is the use of monosodium glutamate (MSG), a flavor enhancer found in many processed foods, including some Maggi variants. MSG is often associated with adverse health effects, such as headaches, nausea, and allergic reactions in sensitive individuals. While regulatory authorities deem MSG safe within prescribed limits, its long-term impact on health remains a topic of debate among nutritionists and food scientists.
Thus, the story of Maggi and its green mark serves as a cautionary tale, urging consumers to look beyond packaging symbols and question what lies beneath. It also highlights the need for greater transparency and stricter regulations in labeling practices, ensuring that consumers can make truly informed choices about the food they consume.
