New Zealand Food Safety (NZFS), Pharmac, and the Ministry of Health are supporting Nestlé’s recall of five batches of Alfamino infant formula—designed for babies with milk allergies—over concerns about potential cereulide contamination.
These products aren’t sold in supermarkets; they’re specialist items obtained via hospitals, pharmacies, and GPs.
“The problem with these products is that they could contain cereulide, a toxin produced by the microorganism Bacillus cereus, which can cause gastrointestinal illness,” NZFS Deputy Director-General Vincent Arbuckle said.
“Fortunately, there have been no reports of associated illness here in New Zealand or internationally.”
The affected batches of Alfamino 400g are:
- batch number 51070017Y2, use-by date 17.04.2027
- batch number 51080017Y1, use-by date 18.04.2027
- batch number 51480017Y3, use-by date 28.05.2027
- batch number 51490017Y1, use-by date 29.05.2027
- batch number 52030017Y1, use-by date 22.07.2027
“They are mainly publicly funded and available through hospitals, pharmacies and GPs. A small amount could have been bought over the counter at pharmacies or online,” Arbuckle added.
“Prescribers and pharmacies are being advised of the recall and asked to inform the parents and guardians of infants who have been prescribed this brand of infant formula.”
“If you have the affected Alfamino formula at home, do not feed it to your baby, if at all possible. Return it to the place of purchase.”
“Pharmac funds a number of alternative products, so discuss what’s best for your baby with your pharmacist or GP.”
Babies who consume the product and show symptoms of cereulide poisoning may experience vomiting, diarrhoea, or unusual lethargy. These symptoms usually emerge 30 minutes to 6 hours after exposure and resolve within 24 hours.
“As is our usual practice, NZFS will work with Nestlé to understand how the contamination occurred and prevent its recurrence,” Arbuckle said.
Complete information on the recall can be found on MPI’s food recall page.