August 05, 2013

A milk formula importer is recalling two batches of products that may contain bacteria that can cause botulism, after its supplier - New Zealand dairy exporter Fonterra - alerted it to a suspected contamination.
 
The Centre for Food Safety is following up the incident, involving the Cow & Gate brand of formula for infants aged one to three. The affected batch numbers are 3178 and 3179, with best-before dates of June 27, 2015 and June 28, 2015.
 
Speaking to the media today, the centre’s Assistant Director (Food Surveillance & Control) Dr Lee Siu-yuen urged people not to feed the formula to infants.
 
Dr Lee said about 140,000 tins of the products have been imported into Hong Kong, and 80,000 had been dispatched to retail outlets.
 
The importer has contacted clients about the recall, and the centre so far has not found the affected products in the market.
 
Hospital Authority Paediatric infectious disease specialist Dr Yau Yat-sun said the risk is not high because the bacteria, clostridium botulinum, would seriously affect only infants under a year old.
 
Contamination symptoms include constipation and weak facial muscles.
 
The centre has set up a hotline, 3978 0600, as has the importer, 3509 2000, to field questions.
 
The centre will continue to liaise with the New Zealand authorities and Hong Kong trade, and monitor the development.