Baby formula from Chemist Warehouse under investigation after mum allegedly finds bugs
A South Auckland mother has been left “disturbed” after discovering what she believes to be live bugs inside a newly opened tin baby formula.
The Aptamil product was bought last Thursday at Chemist Warehouse’s Takanini store and carried an expiry date of June 20, 2027.
Danone, the French multinational company behind Aptamil, told the Herald it had stringent quality and safety processes in place and considered it “unlikely that an insect can remain alive in a sealed can in a low oxygen, low moisture environment”.
The company had not received any similar reports from the same batch and was investigating the complaint.
Jenny Bishop, New Zealand Food Safety’s acting deputy director general, said it was working to establish the facts but there was “no evidence, at this stage, of a wider food safety issue”.
Chemist Warehouse Takanini confirmed an internal investigation was also under way.
The mum of two, who did not want to be named, said she noticed what looked like tiny insects moving inside the powder after opening the tin on Saturday .
“You need really good eyes to spot it, like, it was, like, a really tiny one at first,” she said.
“But then when my husband dug into it, he found more.”
The tin was sealed at the time of purchase and showed no visible holes in its packaging, she claimed.
“We just went and returned it to Chemist Warehouse, and then we dug it in front of the cashiers as well.
“And then we found more inside.”
The family received a refund upon returning it to the store.
“It was a bit disturbing because, you know, we’re dealing with babies here,” she said.
“We’re presuming the whole batch might be infested, so we just switched to the other formula.”
In a statement, Danone said it takes customers’ concerns “extremely seriously” and that all batches undergo extensive testing, including for foreign matter, before being released to market.
“As soon as we were notified of this complaint, it was escalated to our quality team for further analysis.”
Danone also said scorched milk particles can occasionally appear in infant formula products.
“[They’re] a common occurrence in the milk manufacturing process and, although unsightly, they are harmless and do not pose a risk to food safety,” the company said.
“From our conversations with consumers, we know that storage conditions in the home are a critical factor for maintaining the integrity of the product once it’s opened.
“Infant formula products should be stored in a cool dry place. After opening, the container should be kept airtight; avoid leaving the tin open on counters, and consume the contents within four weeks.
“If the foil security seal is damaged or missing when opened, do not use the product.”
At this stage, Bishop said scorched particles could be a possible explanation but confirmed NZ Food Safety would independently test the product.
“We have contacted the manufacturer and will visit them and the retailers to establish the facts.”
She emphasized that if a wider issue was identified, “we would take immediate action to address the risk and keep consumers safe”.
Infant formula manufacturers were required to follow strict rules to ensure their product’s safety, with regulated environments and systematic checks at the production point, Bishop said.
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Even Australians get it - so why not Kiwis???
“Ten years ago, if a heatwave as intense as last week’s record-breaker had hit the east coast, Australia’s power supply may well have buckled. But this time, the system largely operated as we needed, despite some outages.
On Australia’s main grid last quarter, renewables and energy storage contributed more than 50% of supplied electricity for the first time, while wholesale power prices were more than 40% lower than a year earlier.
[…] shifting demand from gas and coal for power and petrol for cars is likely to deliver significantly lower energy bills for households.
Last quarter, wind generation was up almost 30%, grid solar 15% and grid-scale batteries almost tripled their output. Gas generation fell 27% to its lowest level for a quarter century, while coal fell 4.6% to its lowest quarterly level ever.
Gas has long been the most expensive way to produce power. Gas peaking plants tend to fire up only when supply struggles to meet demand and power prices soar. Less demand for gas has flowed through to lower wholesale prices.”
Full article: www.theguardian.com...
If even Australians see the benefit of solar - then why is NZ actively boycotting solar uptake? The increased line rental for electricity was done to make solar less competitive and prevent cost per kWh to rise even more than it did - and electricity costs are expected to rise even more. Especially as National favours gas - which is the most expensive form of generating electricity. Which in turn will accelerate Climate Change, as if New Zealand didn’t have enough problems with droughts, floods, slips, etc. already.
Time to Tickle Your Thinker 🧠
If a zookeeper had 100 pairs of animals in her zoo, and two pairs of babies are born for each one of the original animals, then (sadly) 23 animals don’t survive, how many animals do you have left in total?
Do you think you know the answer? Simply 'Like' this post and we'll post the answer in the comments below at 2pm on the day!
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Poll: As a customer, what do you think about automation?
The Press investigates the growing reliance on your unpaid labour.
Automation (or the “unpaid shift”) is often described as efficient ... but it tends to benefit employers more than consumers.
We want to know: What do you think about automation?
Are you for, or against?
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9.5% For. Self-service is less frustrating and convenient.
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43.4% I want to be able to choose.
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47.1% Against. I want to deal with people.
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