One hundred and fifty cases of salmonellosis have been detected in nine European countries, including France, two European surveillance agencies announced on Tuesday 12 April, denouncing the responsibility of a “Belgian production plant”, a few days after the closure of the Kinder (Ferrero) site in Arlon, Belgium.
“As of April 8, 2022, one hundred and fifty confirmed and probable cases of Salmonella typhimurium monophasic had been reported”, report the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) in a press release. Both agencies have “identified chocolate-based products manufactured by a company in its Belgian production plant as being at the origin of the outbreak of Salmonella »they continue, without mentioning the name of the Italian company specializing in confectionery.
The infections have “produced mainly in children under the age of 10” and have been reported in nine European countries: France, Germany, Belgium, Spain, Ireland, Luxembourg, Norway, Netherlands and Sweden.
Salmonellosis, caused by a bacterium called salmonella, causes symptoms similar to those of sometimes acute gastroenteritis: diarrhea and abdominal cramps, mild fever, even vomiting. No deaths have been reported.
“Internal failures”
According to European experts, further investigations will be “necessary to identify the exact source and precise moment of contamination” and to lean on “wider use of contaminated raw materials in other factories”.
Monday, the Belgian justice opened an investigation in order to establish possible responsibilities within the factory of Arlon. On Friday, the Belgian food safety agency (Afsca) withdrew its production authorization, accusing it of its lack of transparency on an incident that occurred in mid-December. At this time, “S. typhimurium had been detected in a tank of buttermilk at the Belgian establishment of the company in question during its own checks”confirm EFSA and ECDC.
Despite tighter controls and hygiene measures, contaminated chocolate products were distributed in Europe and the United States, leading Ferrero to recognize, on Friday, “internal failures”.
Once the link was established between Kinder products and the cases of salmonellosis, at the end of March, following an alert from the British authorities, recalls were launched in several European countries and in the United States. All products from the Arlon plant are now affectedregardless of their lot number or expiration date, Ferrero said.