BRUSSELS: Belgian health authorities said on Monday they are investigating cases of infants who may have fallen ill after consuming contaminated baby formula produced by Nestlé, warning that the true number of affected cases could be higher than officially reported.
The Flemish Department of Healthcare said confirmed cases in the Flanders region may be underestimated because doctors are not required to routinely test for cereulide, a bacterial toxin linked to the nationwide recall.
Cereulide can cause nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea, and is produced by certain strains of Bacillus cereus.
“When babies present with symptoms consistent with cereulide exposure, doctors are not obliged to take stool samples or test for the toxin,” department spokesperson Joris Moonens told Flemish broadcaster VRT. “That means confirmed figures are likely an underestimation.”
The first confirmed case in Flanders was reported on January 23. Since then, health authorities have urged physicians to report any infants who consumed recalled products and later developed related symptoms.
Belgium’s Federal Agency for the Safety of the Food Chain (FAVV) said it is currently examining around 20 reports from parents whose babies showed symptoms after consuming the recalled formula.
“In such cases, the FAVV may also collect any remaining powder from households and analyse it in the laboratory,” spokesperson Hélène Bonte said.
Nestlé initially collected some recalled products directly from Belgian households but later halted the practice. The recall has since expanded internationally, with French food companies Danone and Lactalis also withdrawing products after cereulide was detected in ingredients sourced from a shared supplier.
Nestlé said the affected products were distributed in more than 50 countries across Europe, the Americas, Asia, Oceania and Africa.
In a video message, Nestlé chief executive Philipp Navratil apologised to parents and caregivers, calling the incident “the largest preventive recall in Nestlé’s history.”
