Maggi
Maggi ( or ) is an international brand of seasonings, instant soups, and noodles that originated in Switzerland in the late 19th century. The Maggi company was acquired by Nestlé in 1947. History. The company originated in Switzerland in 1884, when Julius Maggi took over his father's mill. He quickly became a pioneer of industrial food production, aiming to improve the nutritional intake of worker families. Maggi was the first to bring protein-rich legume meals to the market, and followed up with a ready-made soup based on legume meals in 1886. After that Julius Maggi introduced bouillon concentrates , first in capsules, then in cubes. In 1897, Julius Maggi founded the company Maggi GmbH in Singen, Germany. In 1947, following several changes in ownership and corporate structure, Maggi's holding company merged with the Nestlé company to form Nestlé-Alimentana S.A., currently known in its francophone home base as Nestlé S.A. Products. Cube. The bouillon cube or "Maggi cube" is a meat substitute product that was introduced in 1908. In Germany, Cameroon, Côte d'Ivoire, Bénin, Gambia, Sénégal, Guinea, Nigeria, Ghana, Burkina Faso, Togo, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Mali, Niger, and Mauritania and parts of the Middle East, Maggi cubes are  an integral part of the local cuisine. In Haiti and throughout Latin America, Maggi products, especially bouillon cubes, are widely sold with some repackaging to reflect local terminology. In the German, Dutch, and Danish languages, lovage has come to be known as "Maggi herb" (Ger. "Maggikraut", Du. "maggikruid" or "maggiplant", Da. "maggiurt"), because it tastes similar to Maggi sauce, although lovage is not present in the sauce. Seasoning sauce. In Romania, Mexico, German-speaking countries, the Netherlands, the Czech Republic, Slovenia, Poland and France, "Maggi" is still synonymous with Maggi-Würze (Maggi seasoning sauce), a dark, soy sauce-type hydrolysed  vegetable protein-based condiment sauce. In Spain and Mexico, it is sold under the name "Jugo Maggi." There are a total of nine different formulations, which differ between nations and/or regions. Noodles. Maggi instant noodles are popular in Bangladesh, South Africa, Pakistan, Singapore, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, Australia, New Zealand, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan, Maldives and India and are synonymous with instant noodles in most of these countries. Nestle has 39% market share in Malaysia, and had 90% market share in India prior to a nationwide ban by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India. The ban was later  lifted, but market share diminished to 53%. In Malaysia and Singapore, fried noodles made from Maggi noodles are called Maggi goreng. Maggi Instant noodles are branded as "Maggi 2 Minute Noodles" in Australia, South Africa, New Zealand and India. In India, Maggi Masala noodles carry a green dot, meaning they are specifically formulated to serve vegetarians. However, Maggi chicken noodles carry a red dot, indicating that they are not vegetarian. This special formulation is not available in other countries, unless imported from India. In Philippines, localized versions of Maggi instant noodles were sold until 2011 when the product group was  recalled for suspected "Salmonella" contamination. It did not return to market, while Nestle continues to sell seasoning products including the popular Maggi Magic Sarap. Recipe mixes. Recipe mixes or so-called Fixes were introduced in Germany in 1974. The product offers to the consumers an idea and a recipe to cook with two or three fresh ingredients and a Maggi mix. A complete step-by-step recipe is given on the back of the package. These products were originally launched in Germany, where they became very popular, and some Western European countries. In the 1990s, recipe mixes were introduced in  Eastern Europe, particularly in Russia and Poland (under the Winiary brand), where they became a big success. Nowadays, the portfolio of recipe mixes offer consumers more than 100 recipe ideas across different European countries. Maggi noodles safety concerns in India. In May 2015, food safety regulators from Barabanki, a district of Uttar Pradesh, India reported that samples of Maggi 2 Minute Noodles had unexpectedly high levels of monosodium glutamate (MSG), as well as up to 17 times the permissible limit of lead. This finding led to multiple market withdrawals and investigations in India and beyond. Criticism. Nestlé has faced criticism  of its advertising not adhering to marketing regulations in developed countries, and for making misleading claims in developing countries. In October 2008, Nestlé aired a commercial meant for Bangladeshi television on British TV. The advert made false claims that the noodles would "help to build strong muscles, bone, and hair". The British Advertising Standards Authority stated that the advertisement did not abide by the new EU consumer protection legislation, by which advertisers have to provide proof of health claims.