Customers drop Nestle
17/6/2005 10:31
Shanghai Daily news
Customers expressed concern over Nestle Co products after one of its baby
milk powder formulas was found to contain higher levels of iodine than
permissible in Shanghai and other provinces. The shanghai Food and Drug
Administration said on Wednesday that Nestle China has recalled its NESLAC Gold
3+ Growing Up Milk due to the excess iodine. The product was removed from
supermarkets and sales channels by Tuesday. Officials estimated that about
100 cases of the product were recalled. Huang huangying, a retiree, said
feeding his grandson Nestle milk powder is not worth the risk. "My grandson ate
another type of Nestle milk powder and we changed it for a different brand soon
after hearing the news," he said. "We don't want to take any risks. We
also stopped buying other Nestle products." Employees at Nestle China's
consumer hot line said customers can contact the company for refunds, even if
the product has been partially consumed. On may 25, the Zhejiang Province
Industrial and Commercial Administrative Bureau said a check found NESLAC Gold
3+ Growing Up Milk, produced by Nestle in Heilongjiang Province, had higher
levels of iodine than the national standard. Shanghai authorities spot
checked four samples of Nestle milk powder products in supermarkets on May
27. "We selected NESLAC Gold 3+ Growing Up Milk from the same producer in
Heilongjiang," said Xie Minqiang, vice director of the Shanghai Food and Drug
Administration. "It failed the examination on iodine content. We immediately
requested supermarkets to stop selling the products and asked Nestle China to
recall all the relative milk powder on June 10." Under the national standard,
iodine content should be less than 150 micrograms for every 100 grams of milk
powder. However, the affected product had more than 40 micrograms above the
limit. Officials said the company claimed the problem was due to the
variation of iodine in the raw milk supply in both the Shanghai and Zhejiang
cases. Though sfda officials said there is no significant risk, they insist
the product should be removed from stores.
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