Dairy giant bullish over orders as milk formula product recall expands
Danone Dumex took more infant formula tins off supermarket shelves in Singapore as a precaution after being told by Fonterra that the product was packed on a production line that may have held residue of the questionable material, Singapore’s Channel NewsAsia reported, quoting a statement from Danone Dumex.
Fonterra chief executive Theo Spierings said he had not seen any signs of a reduction in supply contracts by its clientele, which include major food and beverage multinationals, but acknowledged the risk that its bottom line may take a hit in the future.
“The answer to that question is no,” Mr Spierings said in response to a query of whether the company has seen a reduction in orders since the announcement Fonterra had discovered it had exported tainted whey protein powder last week.
“Of course that discussion will come to the table, as we do have contracts... but there have been no discussions on future contracts or those kinds of things,” Mr Spierings said.
He added that Fonterra would make full disclosures on the financial impact of the ensuing global food safety scare as necessary.
Fonterra has been in damage-control mode all week, reassuring consumers from China to Saudi Arabia that all products containing a tainted dairy ingredient made by the company has been withdrawn from markets.
The company has come under fire for dragging its feet in saying it sold whey protein products that contained a bacteria which can cause botulism, a potentially fatal food poisoning.
New Zealand, which depends on the dairy industry for a quarter of its total exports, has been gripped by worries that a raft of recalls for infant formula in China, a major market, and other countries could snowball into a slump in demand or even bans for other dairy products.
Spierings has said that human error involving a dirty pipe at one of its New Zealand plants resulted in whey protein powder being contaminated with a bacteria which can cause botulism.
Yesterday, he said that regulators at the Ministry of Primary Industries conducted further audits at its more than 40 plants and offices around the country, after the ministry earlier this week made the rare move of sending in officials to monitor Fonterra’s product reconciling procedures.
Government officials have expressed frustration over Fonterra’s drawn-out processes to locate the contaminated products.
Product recalls have been ordered in nine countries, including New Zealand, China, and Thailand.
