By Alexander Marrow
LONDON, Jan 7 (Reuters) – Nestle’s recall of some batches of infant nutrition products has widened beyond Europe to Africa, the Americas and Asia, including Brazil, China and South Africa, a tally from the company and national food safety statements show.
No illnesses have yet been confirmed in connection with the batches of SMA, BEBA, NAN and Alfamino formula that Nestle has recalled because of possible contamination with cereulide, a toxin that can cause nausea and vomiting.
At least 37 countries, including most European states, as well as Australia, Brazil, China, Mexico and South Africa have issued health warnings over the infant formulas possibly being contaminated.
The recall piles more pressure on the KitKat and Nescafe maker and its new CEO, Philipp Navratil, who is seeking to revive growth through a portfolio review after management upheavals. Nestle shares are down about 5.7% so far this week.
Brazil’s health ministry said on Wednesday that the Nestle recall was a preventative measure after the toxin had been detected in products originating in the Netherlands.
Nestle Australia said the batches recalled there had been manufactured in Switzerland, while Nestle China said it was recalling formula batches imported from Europe.
A notice from South Africa’s National Consumer Commission said that the NAN infant formula being recalled was produced in June 2025 and has a lifespan of about 18 months.
“It was also exported to Namibia and Eswatini,” the commission said.
Austria’s health ministry said on Tuesday that the recall affected 800-plus products from more than 10 factories and was the largest in Nestle’s history. A Nestle spokesperson could not verify this.
Nestle said on Tuesday that it had tested all arachidonic acid oil and corresponding oil mixes used in production of its potentially affected infant nutrition products after a quality issue was detected in an ingredient from a leading supplier.
It is now ramping up production and activating alternative suppliers of the acid oil to maintain supply.
(Reporting by Alexander Marrow in London, Igor Sodre in Sao Paulo and Sfundo Parakozov and Anathi Madubela in JohannesburgEditing by Alexander Smith and David Goodman)
