Baby food fears: Inspectors visit Cork and Wexford plants amid toxin scare

Aptamil infant formula, batches of which have been recalled in Ireland. As many as 60 countries could be involved in recalls of brands including Nestlé's SMA and Danone's Aptamil. Picture: FSAI/PA

Department of Agriculture inspectors have been dispatched to Danone factories in Cork and Wexford in recent days as global concern grows around baby food production and possible toxin contamination.

The factories in Macroom and Wexford run by Danone, and in the Netherlands run by Nestlé, have been connected to concerns in Ireland about a toxin called cereulide.

Read Niamh Griffin's analysis of this issue in the  Irish Examiner  on Monday, in print and online.

According to international reports, as many as 60 countries could be involved in the Nestlé recalls.

It comes after the toxin was identified in arachidonic (ARA) oil made in China by a single supplier which works with many baby formula manufacturers.

As many as 60 countries could be involved in recalls of popular baby formula brands including Nestlé's SMA. Picture: Jason Alden/Bloomberg/Getty

Fears have been sparked around popular baby foods such as SMA and Aptamil.

Legal action taken in France by Dutch non-profit group Foodwatch and eight families against seven food firms described babies with repeated vomiting, persistent diarrhoea, fever, and stomach pains.

The Food Safety Authority of Ireland said that, as of Friday, no Irish families had reported issues, but that it is monitoring the situation with HSE public health doctors.

• Niamh Griffin, Health Correspondent