Parents warned about imported infant formula

The General Administration of Customs has advised consumers to stop buying and using some infant formulas produced by Abbott Nutrition, a healthcare company based in the United States.

The administration said on Sunday that the US Food and Drug Administration had announced on Feb 18 that it was investigating into complaints about bacterial infections involving four infants who consumed the products.

They all consumed powdered infant formula produced by a facility in Sturgis, Michigan, including the Similac, Alimentum and Elecare brands, it said.

The customs administration suggested that consumers not purchase or use powdered formula products from the company that meet any of the following conditions: that the first two digits of the product code are numbers 22 through 37; that the code on the container contains K8, SH or Z2; or that the expiration date is April 1,2022, or later.

The products haven't entered China through general trade, the administration said, adding that consumers who bought the products through cross-border e-commerce channels should stop using them.

Similac HMFortifi, a baby nutrition supplement for special medical purposes produced by the company, has been exported to China, but Abbott China had initiated a recall, the administration said.

It said it will keep a close eye on the FDA's investigation.

The FDA and other US authorities are investigating complaints of infant illness related to products from Abbott Nutrition's Sturgis facility received from Sept 20 to Jan 11.

FDA said among the four complaints, three reports were about Cronobacter sakazakii infections and one was about a Salmonella Newport infection, with a Cronobacter infection possibly having caused one death.

On Feb 17, the company recalled powdered infant formulas from the three brands produced at the Michigan facility.

It said the recalled products had been distributed to over 30 countries and regions including Australia, Canada, China and Colombia.

The FDA advised consumers not to use recalled powdered infant formula from the three brands. The recalled products can be identified by the seven to nine digit code on the bottom of the container and expiration date.

Children who are experiencing any symptoms such as sepsis, meningitis, temperature changes, jaundice or difficulty breathing after using the products need to seek medical care immediately, it said.

The website similacrecall.com offers information for consumers to check if the products they have are on the recall list. As of press time, Abbott China hadn't offered a way for people on the Chinese mainland who bought the products via cross-border e-commerce to return or exchange products.