The CEO of Nestlé has issued a video apology for the recall of some batches of the company's infant nutrition products in dozens of countries.
The recall of nearly 80 batches of the SMA products could threaten Nestlé's strong position in China and other large markets for infant formula.
The list of recalled products was yesterday significantly widened and now affects batches that may have been imported to Ireland from the UK.
At least 53 countries across Europe, the Americas, Asia and Africa have issued health warnings over the infant formulas recalled by Nestlé because of possible contamination with the toxin cereulide.
Nestlé advised customers that have purchased the products to contact them via its online form, by sharing a photo of the product and the batch code.
Here, the Food Safety Association of Ireland (FSAI) advised that consumption of foods containing the cereulide toxin can lead to nausea and severe vomiting and symptoms can appear within five hours, with the duration of illness usually between six to 24 hours.
However, it said there has been no confirmed reports of illness in Ireland due to the consumption of the recalled batches.
Apology for 'worry and disruption'
Nestle CEO Philipp Navratil apologised for the "worry and disruption" the recall caused for parents, caregivers and other customers.
In the video published yesterday, he said there have been no confirmed cases of illness linked to the recalled batches of SMA, BEBA, NAN and Alfamino formula, which were potentially contaminated by a quality issue in an ingredient called arachidonic acid oil (ARA) from a leading supplier.
Nestlé confirmed a quality concern at one of its factories in the Netherlands in December and began a precautionary recall across several European countries, Mr Navratil said.
"We have suspended sourcing ARA oil from the supplier concerned," a Nestlé spokesperson said, declining to name the supplier. "We have already restarted production using safe oil from another supplier."
Amsterdam-listed ARA producer dsm-firmenich said that none of its products had been affected by the Nestlé recall. Chinese company Cabio Biotech, shares of which plunged almost 12% on 8 January, did not respond to a request for comment.
Cabio had said in its 2024 annual report that it was developing its relationship with major clients such as Nestlé and targeting international expansion.
Recall could be ‘pretty damaging’ in China
Highlighting the global nature of Nestlé's supply chains, the recall quickly spread from Europe to large countries including Brazil, China and South Africa.
Nestlé is one of the largest players in China's infant formula market.
China's State Administration for Market Regulation last week urged Nestlé to "fulfil its corporate responsibility", recall the relevant batches and safeguard consumers.
Barclays analysts noted the pressure from the Chinese authorities and said the issue could be "pretty damaging" for the company, especially in China, where mothers are particularly sensitive to this issue because of previous milk contamination cases involving various producers.
