Food giant Danone has expanded its recalls of infant formula to include new batches in the UK and Spain, food agencies in the countries concerned said Friday, while batches in Croatia and Slovenia are also affected.
The British food safety agency has announced the withdrawal of batches of Aptamil and Cow&Gate brands "because the cereulide toxin may be present."
She emphasizes that this recall of about fifteen different batches, with different expiry dates, constitutes an "extension" of a first recall dated January 23.
For its part, the Spanish Agency for Food Safety and Nutrition (Aesan) indicated that it was extending the "alert" of January 24 "for the possible presence of cereulide in infant preparations from Ireland of the brands Almiron and Blédina", two brands of the Danone group.
"In accordance with the precautionary principle, the manufacturing company has decided to withdraw new products and batches. These products are being withdrawn from the marketing channels. People who have the products covered by this alert at home are advised to refrain from consuming them," she continued.
Batches of infant milk produced by Danone in Germany have also been recalled in Croatia and Slovenia, according to official notifications recorded by the European RASFF platform.
In terms of the number of batches, the recalls carried out since Thursday are significantly higher than the recalls announced by various manufacturers since mid-January, according to data compiled by AFP.
The announcements from the British and Spanish agencies come the day after recalls of infant formula in France and several other European countries, following the update by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) of its recommendations concerning the tolerated threshold of cereulide in preparations, a toxin that can cause diarrhea, nausea and vomiting.
The French food giant did not immediately respond to AFP's requests for information on the list of countries affected by recalls following the update of EFSA's recommendations, nor on the number of batches and boxes involved.
Cereulide, produced by certain bacteria, has been detected in an oil rich in arachidonic acid produced by the Chinese industrialist Cabio Biotech, a supplier to several giants of the agri-food industry.
Since December, Nestlé, Danone and Lactalis, as well as smaller players in this rapidly growing market, have carried out multiple recalls, affecting more than 60 countries.
The size of the recalled batches can vary from one manufacturer to another or depending on the orders they receive. The major food companies are not disclosing the number of boxes affected.
Criminal investigations have been opened in France, notably in Bordeaux and Angers, after the deaths of two infants who consumed recalled Nestlé milk, but they have not established a direct link at this stage.
Five other infants have so far been hospitalized in France after consuming infant milks affected by the recalls and have all since been discharged from the hospital, with health authorities reiterating that no direct link has been established at this stage with this toxin.
Following the announcement of widespread recalls in France and several European countries, Danone said on Thursday that it wanted to "reassure parents".
"Our infant formulas are safe. All of our brands' baby formulas are produced according to strict food safety standards and undergo rigorous checks before leaving our factories," the French giant assured.
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