Nestlé, the world’s largest food and beverage company, has recalled specific batches of its infant formula in over 50 countries.
In a statement announcing the development, Nestlé said the recall was due to the “potential presence of cereulide in the batches concerned”.
Cereulide is a substance of bacterial origin that causes foodborne illness and is created by certain strains of the microorganism Bacillus cereus.
“The safety and wellbeing of babies is our absolute priority,” the statement reads.
“There have been no confirmed reports of any illness associated with consumption of the products concerned.
“Nevertheless, out of an abundance of caution, Nestlé has decided to perform this voluntary product recall in line with our strict product quality and safety protocols.”
Some of the countries affected are Austria, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Lithuania, and the Netherlands.
Others are Norway, Poland, Portugal, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Mexico, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay, Australia, New Zealand, the Philippines, South Africa, Taiwan and Vietnam.
Nestlé advised consumers in affected countries not to feed the recalled batches to their babies.
The company said batch codes could be found on the base of tins or boxes, depending on the product type, and that customers would be refunded.
However, in a separate statement on Friday, Nestlé Nigeria said infant formula products sold in the country are not affected by the recall.
“We would like to clarify that Infant Formula sold by Nestlé Nigeria is not part of the voluntary and precautionary recall of specific batches of Infant Formula announced in some countries,” the statement reads.
According to Nestlé Nigeria, all infant formula products officially registered with the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) remain safe.
“We want to emphasize that the Nestlé Infant Formula products sold by Nestlé Nigeria and officially registered with NAFDAC are not affected by this recall,” the company said.
“We would like to reassure that all SMA (SMA Gold 1, SMA Gold 2 and SMA Gold 3) and NAN product ranges (NAN Optipro 1, NAN Optipro 2 and NAN Optipro 3) sold by Nestlé Nigeria are safe for consumption.
“The safety and quality of our products, and the health of babies, are our top priorities.”
