False communal claim links Pakistan-based company to Tirupati temple 'laddu' row

What is the claim?

Amid controversy over the alleged use of animal fat in the prasad (a food offering to a deity, later distributed to devotees) at the Tirumala Tirupati temple, an image circulating on social media falsely claims to show profiles of Muslim individuals as evidence that the ghee supplier for the temple is Muslim-led. 

One user on X (formerly Twitter) posted, “These are the top management names of the Tamil Nadu-based company that supplies Desi Ghee to Tirupati Balaji.” Archived versions of such posts can be found here, here and here. 

Screenshots of the social media posts. (Source: X/Modified by Logically Facts)

However, the viral image actually depicts employees of A.R. Foods (Pvt) Limited, a Pakistan-based company, not the ghee supplier for the Tirupati temple, A.R. Dairy Food Private Limited. The similarity in names has caused confusion on social media.

How did we find the truth?

We established that the company in the viral image is A.R. Foods (Pvt) Limited, while the Tamil Nadu-based company accused of supplying adulterated ghee is A.R. Dairy Food Private Limited. Despite their similar names, these are distinct entities. A.R. Foods (Pvt) Limited, a spice company, was founded in Pakistan in 1970, while A.R. Dairy Food Private Limited, which produces dairy products, was founded in India in 1995.

Pakistani company A.R. Foods (Pvt) Limited

A.R. Foods (Pvt) Limited operates the “Phool” brand, which sells packaged spices. Details can be found on their website (arfoods.com.pk). The “.pk” domain indicates that the website is registered in Pakistan.

A review of A.R. Foods (Pvt) Limited's LinkedIn profile confirms its base in Islamabad, Pakistan. We cross-referenced the five employees listed in the viral image with the company’s LinkedIn page. Four employees' names, photos, and job titles matched. Although we could not view the profile of the fifth individual, 'Leonidas Sheikh,' due to privacy settings, a separate search confirmed his position as 'Warehouse Operations Manager at A.R. Foods (Pvt) Limited,' consistent with the viral screenshot. Thus, it is evident that the image was sourced from the LinkedIn accounts of this Pakistani company's employees.

Furthermore, the locations in both the viral image and the original profiles are clearly stated as being in Pakistan.

Comparison between the viral image and the profiles found on the LinkedIn page of the Pakistani company. (Source: X/Modified by Logically Facts)

Indian company A.R. Dairy Food Private Limited

A.R. Dairy Food Private Limited is a Tamil Nadu-based dairy company that operates the Raaj Milk brand. The directors are Rajasekaran Suriyaprabha, Raju Rajasekaran, and Srinivasalunaidu Ramchandran Srinivasan. The company is registered in Dindigul, Tamil Nadu, and its location is visible on Google Maps.

The company has denied allegations of using animal fat in its products. The Hindu reported that the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) announced that A.R. Dairy Food Private Limited has been blacklisted for supplying highly adulterated ghee, with criminal proceedings to follow if the company fails to provide a satisfactory response to a show-cause notice.

Tirupati prasad row

The dispute over the use of animal fat in ghee escalated after Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu accused the previous YSRCP government, led by Jagan Mohan Reddy, of permitting the use of animal fat in Tirupati laddus. Allegations surfaced that the ghee used for these laddus contained “beef tallow,” “lard” (from pig fat), and fish oil.

The Naidu-led Telugu Desam Party (TDP) released a lab report from the National Dairy Development Board in Anand, Gujarat, which allegedly confirmed the presence of animal fat in ghee samples sent by the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams.

Logically Facts has contacted A.R. Foods (Pvt) Limited for comment and will update this fact-check upon receiving a response.

The verdict

The Pakistani company featured in the viral screenshot has been inaccurately identified as the entity accused of using animal fat in the ghee for Tirupati temple laddus. The Islamabad-based A.R. Foods (Pvt) Limited is not the same as the Indian A.R. Dairy Food Private Limited, which has faced allegations of supplying adulterated ghee.