Nestle disputes ‘substandard’ KitKat finding, faults authorities for ‘ignoring evidence’

Authorities have not considered the facts presented by its distributor, the company says in a statement

Nestlé Bangladesh has challenged the basis of a criminal case accusing it of importing substandard KitKat, saying authorities acted without reviewing documents or consulting the company before seeking arrest warrants for two senior officials.

On Tuesday, the company said in a statement that its distributor had already handed over all test reports and supporting papers, yet inspectors proceeded with the filing “without considering the facts presented”.

It added that accredited labs abroad found the product within acceptable limits under comparable standards, and that BSTI has confirmed no specific standard exists for chocolate-coated wafers like KitKat.

Dhaka South City Corporation filed a case on Monday against the company for importing and marketing substandard KitKat in the market. Kamrul Hasan, a food inspector, filed the case.

A court dealing with food fraud issued an arrest warrant against Nestlé’s MD and public policy manager.

“For this matter, the authority has not made any official contact with Nestlé Bangladesh PLC. However, when the official contacted our distributor, all relevant information and documents mentioned above were shared in writing,” said the statement sent by Nestle Bangladesh.

“Despite this, and without considering the facts presented, a case has been filed against our managing director and a senior public affairs official, resulting in a warrant issued on Nov 24, 2025,” the statement added.

Independent tests conducted on samples from the same batch in accredited laboratories in India and Dubai indicate that the results for the parameter "acidity of extracted fat" would fall within acceptable limits if the BSTI standard were applicable to KitKat, the statement said.

The Bangladesh Standards and Testing Institution (BSTI) has not yet established specific standards for products like KitKat chocolate-coated wafers, the statement said.

“Therefore, the KitKat product does not fall under any existing BSTI standards, as confirmed by BSTI in a separate letter,” the statement said.

Customs releases the products upon receipt of a test clearance report from the Bangladesh Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (BCSIR) confirming the product's fitness for human consumption under food safety laws, as per Article 23(24) of the Import Policy Order 2021-2024, the statement said.

Accordingly, we obtained a BCSIR report confirming that the product is compliant with the testing parameters as per food safety laws, said the Nestlé Bangladesh statement.

The statement also assured that the company upholds both local and global laws and regulations, adhering to the stricter of the two.

Nestlé imports KitKat products as finished goods from India and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), classified under HS Code 1905.32.00 as "Chocolate Coated Wafer".

The DSCC said the wafer biscuit contained 2.32 percent acidity against the permitted level of a maximum 1 percent as set in the Bangladesh Standards and Testing Institution standards.

Chocolate used in the coating contained 9.31 percent milk solids against the approved range of 12 to 14 percent. Milk fat content in the same product was measured at 1.23 percent, below the approved limit of 2.5 to 3.5 percent, the case alleged.

Meghna Sugar did not comment on the matter, but Meghna Group Senior General Manager (Brand) Kazi Md Mohiuddin said in a written statement on Wednesday: "We do not use sulphur anywhere in our production process. So, we do not understand the claim made about the sulphur in our sugar.

"Secondly, we import sugar from Brazil, which is the largest exporter in the world. They do not export any sugar without certain specifications. We only do carbonation here. So, here we actually have no scope to compromise on any quality."

He also insisted that Meghna Sugar complies with all standards set by the BSTI and said: "Our sucrose content is said to be in line with their standards.

"So, it is not clear how all this came about. Despite this, as per the court order, we will submit all the evidence accordingly."

Court orders arrest of bosses of Nestlé Bangladesh, MGI, over ‘substandard KitKat, sugar’