Nestlé India Ltd (Specific Subsidiary Focus) — Ethics Grade D+

Nestlé India Ltd (Specific Subsidiary Focus) receives an overall ethics grade of D+ (33/100) on CancelCo's corporate accountability database. Sector: Consumer Goods. Market cap: Large Cap.

Category scores

• labor: 45
• privacy: 60
• consumer: 15
• environment: 30
• humanRights: 40

Documented incidents (3)

• Maggi Lead Contamination (high, 2015) — Indian regulators found Maggi instant noodles contained lead levels seven times the permissible limit and excess MSG, resulting in a nationwide ban and the destruction of 37,000 tons of product.
• Groundwater DEPLETION (medium, 2018) — Local communities in India have protested several Nestlé bottling plants for extracting massive amounts of groundwater, allegedly causing borewells in nearby villages to go dry.
• Sugar in Baby Food (high, 2024) — Investigations revealed that Nestlé added high levels of sugar to baby cereal and formula brands sold in developing countries like India, while the same products in Europe remained sugar-free.

Documented good deeds

• Farmer Support Program — Provides technical assistance and medical aid to over 100,000 dairy farmers in the Moga district of Punjab.

Ethical alternatives

• ITC Limited — The only company in the world to be water, carbon, and solid waste-positive for over a decade.