Contaminated baby milk scandal is now affecting 83 countries
A salmonella scandal at French dairy group Lactalis has affected 83 countries, with 12 million boxes of powdered milk being recalled, the company’s chief executive said yesterday.
Emmanuel Besnier, heir of the secretive family behind one of the world’s biggest dairy groups, was speaking publicly for the first time since an outcry erupted over claims the company hid the salmonella outbreak at a factory.
“We must take account of the scale of this operation. More than 12 million boxes are affected,” Mr Besnier said.
He said distributors would no longer have to sort through the produce to find the contaminated powder: “They know that everything has to be removed from the shelves.”
Mr Besnier promised compensation for all the families affected. He said the consequences of the crisis for consumers, including babies younger than 6 months, were at the forefront of his mind.
“It is for us, for me, a great concern,” Mr Besnier told the Journal du Dimanche.
Hundreds of lawsuits have been filed against the group by families who say their children had salmonella poisoning after drinking the powdered milk.
So far, French officials have reported 35 cases of infants with salmonella contracted from the powder, while one case has been reported in Spain and another is being investigated in Greece.
“There are complaints and there will be an investigation with which we will fully collaborate,” Mr Besnier said.
Founded in 1933 by Mr Besnier’s grandfather, Lactalis has become an industry giant with annual sales of about €17 billion, (Dh76.16bn), with products including Galbani ricotta and mozzarella cheese in Italy.
With 246 production sites in 47 countries, its list of products also features household names like President butter and Societe roquefort. Two brands, Picot and Milumel baby milk, were the subject of chaotic international recalls issued last month after dozens of children fell ill.
The scandal deepened this month when French investigative weekly Le Canard Enchaine reported it was revealed state inspectors had given a clean bill of health to the Lactalis site in Craon, north-west France, in early September.
They failed to find the salmonella bacteria that was detected by Lactalis’s tests in August and November, which were not reported to the authorities.