Tuesday, August 8 2006 10:40 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

New Delhi: Cola major PepsiCo yesterday (Aug 7, 2006) asserted that pesticide content in its products was much lower than commonly-consumed tea and other food products and were within the safety standards set by government.

"Independent government data has shown that pesticide residues present in soft drinks are minuscule," Pepsi said as it launched a public awareness campaign.

Comparing pesticide presence across various products, the company claimed that pesticide level in soft drinks are negligible when compared to the levels in tea and other food products like eggs, rice, apple and milk products.

The cola giant claimed in an advertisement that pesticide residues in soft drinks did not compromise safety, saying, "Is the safety of soft drinks compromised by pesticide residues? No".

Stating that its beverages are safe, Pepsi said, "Our products comply with the Prevention of Food Adulteration Act directive on the use of water in the preparation of soft drinks. We also comply with Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) for packaged drinking water."

The company said it had been working with government, scientific community and NGOs to establish science-based regulations.

The new regulations for carbonated soft drinks notified by the Health Ministry on July 15, 2004 are comparable to the most stringent international regulations, including that of the European Union, it said, adding all PepsiCo products in India met those regulations.