Infant formulas’ scare and the responsibility of companies in nutrition industry

On September 5, New Zealand’s Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) announced on its web site that products containing whey protein concentrate manufactured by Fonterra were not and never contaminated with Clostridium botulinum and therefore pose no risk to consumers of contracting botulism. This includes products made under the Abbott Gain Plus brand.

“I confirm that the test results and additional information have proved that the whey protein batches state in the suspected list on August 6 are free of Clostridium botulinum and pose no health risk to consumers,” said Scott Gallacher - MPI's acting director-general.

Early August, after the Fonterra’s announcement, Abbott has taken the decision in conjunction with VFA to retrieve the suspected Similac GainPlus Eye-Q Stage 3 (for children from 1-3 years old). Within 48 hours, nearly 90 per cent of Similac GainPlus products suspected of CB contamination were withdrawn from the market. Though causing a huge confusion to the market, efforts of Abbott and its distributors in taking responsible and fast actions were highly appreciated by authorities.

In nutrition industry, food safety issue appears to be either a challenge or an opportunity for companies. The responsible and appropriate responses and actions not only help driving company out of the unexpected issues but also strengthening its reputation by demonstrating the capability in  professionally managing issues and growing sustainably. Though it was a false alarm, responsible actions of Abbott and impacted companies are the right things to do.

“The food companies involved should be applauded for their decisions to do their precautionary recall. From a food industry perspective, they did exactly the right thing – they put public safety first,” said Food & Grocery Council chief executive Katherine Rich.

The news that there was no botulism risk from Fonterra’s batches of whey protein concentrate  come as a huge relief to consumers.  As it has never been an easy task in deciding the most suitable baby formula for the child, and most of choices are kept consistent from the early age to achieve the best progression. Mum and dad buyers of infant formula now can be assured to continue using their trusted products without any fear of risks to their babies. Market has also observed the positive recovery when consumers started to coming back to brands like Similac with the trust strengthened.

“Abbott’s number one priority has always been and will continue to be our consumers. We take our responsibility to provide high quality, safe products very seriously. We will continue to make decisions and implement measures that give confidence to our customers that our products are safe,” said Abbott Vietnam general manager Jullian Caillet.

The retrieval was completed successfully. Even though, retrieved products have tested to be no harmful to consumers’ health, Abbott has conducted the destruction and will not recirculate the retrieved products to the market.