With the sales of its products hit by pesticide allegations, the cola companies went on the offensive.

As the Kerala government notified its ban on manufacture and sale of its products, Pepsi India is planning to move the Kerala High Court against the decision. A company spokesperson said: ‘‘Once we receive it (the order), we will take legal recourse.’’

And, in a damage control exercise, Coca Cola today asserting that pesticide level in its products were well within stringent European Union standards. However, CSE (Centre for Science and Environment) stuck by its report and dared the cola majors to disclose the test results.

‘‘...No detectable level of pesticides in Indian soft drinks when measured against the EU criteria in independent lab study,’’ a Coca-Cola India statement said here today. The company’s statement follows action taken by a number of state governments, including Kerala, which had banned production and sale of colas in the state.

The statement by Coke was followed by a quick rejoinder by CSE which said that the products tested by its lab do not meet the norms, both Indian and European Union, as claimed and were unsafe.

Coca Cola has asserted that its soft drinks have been regularly tested and evaluated by a world renowned UK Government Laboratory—Central Science Laboratories (CSL)— and conformed to the stringent standards. ‘‘All tests show that our soft drinks are below the EU criteria for pesticide residues in bottled water,’’ the cola giant said.

CSE refuted Coca Cola’s statement saying that the cola companies have repeatedly been telling the government ministries and committees that their products are a complex matrix and therefore cannot be tested. CSE also alleged that the cola majors had failed to disclose any test results to prove the safety of its products.

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