Four reports of Dutch babies getting sick after drinking Nestlé baby formula
Nestlé has received four reports of babies in the Netherlands becoming ill after drinking the company’s formula, RTL Nieuws reports, based on figures obtained from the company. The babies experiences symptoms such as diarrhea and vomiting. According to Nestlé, this does not prove that their illness was caused by the formula. Authorities in France are investigating the death of a baby after drinking Nestlé formula.
On January 5, Nestlé issued a safety warning for baby formula from its brands Little Steps, Alfamino, SMA, and BEBA due to the possible presence of Bacillus cereus, a bacterium that can produce a toxin that causes food poisoning, in a raw material used in the formula. According to Nestle, the recall applies in 63 countries, including the Netherlands.
The consumer organization Foodwatch told RTL that it has received dozens of reports from concerned parents in various European countries. According to Foodwatch, these also include reports of sick babies.
One of these parents is the Dutch father, Jip. His nearly-6-month-old son, Oliver, became ill shortly after drinking formula from a newly opened can of Nestlé Little Steps. “He wasn’t drinking well, cried while drinking, and had diarrhea. He became gray and listless,” Jip told the broadcaster.
According to the father, the house doctor and two pediatricians concluded that Oliver likely had the bacteria Bacillus cereus, the same bacterium that prompted Nestlé to issue a worldwide recall earlier this month. This is also described in the GP’s report on Oliver, RTL saw.
On January 13, Nestlé CEO Philipp Navratil released a video message repeatedly stressing that there were “no confirmed cases of illness” linked to the formula in question. He said that Nestlé recalled the products “as a precaution” after identifying a quality issue with an ingredient, and not because it was established that babies had become ill from the formula. According to the CEO, based on the available data, there was no acute risk to babies.
The statement completely upset Oliver’s parents. According to father Jip, they contacted Nestlé in the Netherlands on January 6 and notified the Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority (NVWA) a day later. Jip said that the Nestlé director confirmed by phone that the formula was contaminated and that their son’s symptoms were related to it. “We don’t feel taken seriously,” Jip said. “They kept talking about ‘precaution,’ while our child was actually ill.”
According to his parents, Oliver is doing well again after switching formulas. His father plans to hold Nestlé liable and demand compensation.
