Food products Nestlé baby food recall spreads to other countries
Nestlé's global baby food recall is expanding. While a few days ago, according to the food company, a good 30 countries were affected, the latest figures on Thursday morning show that at least 50 countries are now affected.
08.01.2026, 10:48
SDA
In Latin America, Asia, Africa and the Middle East, Nestlé is recalling batches of infant formula in major markets such as Brazil, Chile, China, Egypt, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. Australia and New Zealand are now also affected. In Europe, recalls have been carried out in at least 27 markets to date. No recalls have yet been ordered for the USA and Canada.
On Monday, Nestlé announced that it was recalling infant formula that could be contaminated with poison. The well-known Beba brand and special products such as Alfamino are affected. Parents were asked by Nestlé to stop using the products from certain batches and to return them to retailers.
Image damage is imminent
According to the information published on a dedicated website about the incident, Nestlé still assumes that the financial consequences will be limited. The recall still accounts for significantly less than 0.5 percent of the food company's annual sales.
The damage to the company's image is likely to be greater. If consumer concerns about product and brand safety persist, this could result in high sales losses, according to a commentary by investment bank Jefferies. Competitors such as Danone could benefit from this.
Jean-Philippe Bertschy from Bank Vontobel also believes that the massive product recall poses reputational risks. Even if no illnesses are yet known, the case leaves a "bitter aftertaste", especially in terms of communication.
Expectations of the new company management under CEO Philipp Navratil are high, also in terms of communication. As soon as the extent of the recall is known, Nestlé must provide comprehensive and clear information in order to regain trust, says the Vontobel analyst.
Full transparency required
Nestlé has also received criticism from the consumer protection organization Foodwatch, which assumes that around 60 countries and more than 800 products from over ten Nestlé factories are affected by the campaign. Nestlé and the responsible authorities waited weeks in some cases before providing information about the problems.
According to the NGO, many questions about this "scandal" remain unanswered. For example, when the contamination first occurred or which production plants were affected by the problems. Full transparency is needed, Foodwatch demanded in a statement.
When asked by the news agency AWP on Thursday, Nestlé itself did not comment on the possible damage to its image or on questions regarding the overall scope of the recall. The company referred to the information on its website.
