The brand of dairy products, Lactalis, announced the withdrawal of their baby formula due to contamination with Salmonella. The product is distributed in France and other European countries, as well as places in Latin America, such as Colombia, Haiti and Peru.
Jennifer Lee Alvarado, Head of Normalization and Control Unit, of the Direction Regulation of Sanitary Interest of the Ministry of Health, indicated that this product is not registered in Costa Rica, so it cannot be sold here.
Michel Nalet, spokesman for the Lactalis company, told the AFP news agency that the decision to withdraw the products from the market was taken on Sunday, after the poisoning of 20 babies under six months old in France.
According to the spokesperson of the company, they are not able to say how many of the seven thousand tons of product that would have been contaminated could have already reached the market or even been consumed.
Salmonella is the name of a group of bacteria that is found in raw poultry, eggs, beef and sometimes in unwashed fruits and vegetables. The symptoms are usually fever, diarrhea, abdominal cramps, headache, and in some cases, nausea, vomiting and loss of appetite.