Nestle recalls several baby formula products over food poisoning fears
By George Lithgow, Press Association
Food giant Nestle has recalled some of its baby formula products over concerns they may contain a food poisoning toxin.
The company said several batches of its SMA infant formula and follow-on formula were not safe to be fed to babies.
The Food Standards Agency of Ireland (FSAI) said affected batches may contain the cereulide toxin, which can cause nausea and severe vomiting if consumed.
In a statement, the FSAI said: "The FSAI advises that cereulide toxin may be pre-formed in a food and is extremely heat resistant.
"Consumption of foods containing cereulide toxin can lead to nausea and severe vomiting. Symptoms can appear within five hours. The duration of illness is usually six to 24 hours.
"The FSAI is advising parents, guardians and caregivers who may have the recalled products at home not to feed them to their infant or young child.
"If no symptoms are displayed, nothing further needs to be done. If a parent, guardian or caregiver is concerned about the health of their infant or young child, they should contact a healthcare professional."
Nestle apologised to customers but said there had been no confirmed reports of any related illness so far.
The problem was caused by an ingredient provided by a leading supplier, it added.
Nestle products affected by the recall include SMA Advanced First Infant Milk, SMA Advanced Follow-On Milk, SMA Anti Reflux, SMA Alfamino, SMA First Infant Milk, SMA Little Steps First Infant Milk, SMA Comfort, and SMA Lactose Free.
More detail about which batches have been recalled can be found on FSAI or on the Nestle website.
In a statement, the company said: “Following the detection of a quality issue with an ingredient provided by a leading supplier, Nestle has undertaken testing of all arachidonic acid (ARA) oil and corresponding oil mixes used in the productionâ¯of potentially impacted infant nutrition products.
“No illnesses have been confirmed in connection with the products involved to date.
“The company is in contact with UK authorities and as a precautionary measure, is voluntarily recalling specific batches of its SMA infant formula and follow-on formula.
“Nestle assures parents and caregivers that it is implementing appropriate actions to safeguard the health and wellbeing of families and their babies.
“At the same time, the company is working to minimise any potential supply disruption.
“Nestle remains committed to keeping parents, caregivers and the public informed and to providing clear, transparent information and support throughout this process.”
Voluntary recall
Director of incidents at the FSAI, Dr Michelle Minihan, has defended the authority’s decision to allow Nestle to make a voluntary recall of SMA infant formulas rather than issuing an enforcement notice about its removal from shops.
Dr Minihan told RTÉ radio’s Morning Ireland that an enforcement issue had not been issued because the products were manufactured in other European countries.
“The competent authorities such as ourselves in those other European countries are overseeing that recall, we have been in communication with our colleagues across the EU to understand the nature and extent of the issue that's going on with these particular infant formulas.
"And we will ensure and follow up with those competent authorities in those countries where it is manufactured to make sure corrective actions are taken in the plants.”
Dr Minihan went on to explain that the potential harm to infants and young children was nausea and vomiting and the advice to parents and caregivers was to check if they had the affected products, to stop feeding them to their children and to seek medical advice if the child was displaying symptoms.
"The toxin is particularly heat resistant, that means if you prepare the infant formula as per the instructions it won't be killed satisfactorily and it can cause illness in infants and young children such as nausea and vomiting.
"Immediately stop feeding it to your infant or young child and if they're not displaying any symptoms of illness then you don't need to take any further action.
"However, if they are displaying symptoms of an illness you should seek the advice of a medical professional or a healthcare professional.
"We will ensure and follow up with those competent authorities in those countries where it is manufactured to make sure corrective actions are taken in the plants.
"Customers of Nestle who have this product on their shelves were contacted yesterday to remove affected batches. That has happened. We will be verifying that today. So what's on the shelves are unaffected products."
