Food giant Nestle is destroying instant noodles worth 3.2 billion rupees (50 million dollars) in India after some of its products were banned by food regulators.

"The process of destroying the noodles has begun. We have also informed the Bombay Stock exchange about this on Monday evening," Nestle India spokesman Sameer Barde said Tuesday.

The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India said on June 6 that Maggi-branded products contained "unsafe and hazardous" levels of lead and banned all nine available varieties, prompting Nestle to withdraw them from shop shelves.

The company has maintained that the noodles are safe and challenged the ban in an Indian court.

In a statement on Monday, Nestle said the value of withdrawn noodles included stocks taken off the market as well as stocks stored in factories and distribution centres.

"There will be additional costs to take into account, for example, bringing stock from the market, transporting the stock to the destruction points, destruction costs etc. The final figure will have to be confirmed at a later date," Nestle said.

The food regulator has ordered tests on more noodle products by some Indian and multinational firms after banning Maggi noodles.

Maggi noodles, in their yellow-and-red packages, have been a familiar sight on shop shelves across India.