‘No Nestlé product is made from milk adulterated with melamine, Nestle said in a statement.
The company has confirmed that the Department of Health has asked Nestlé to do a compliance trade withdrawal of a batch of Lactogen 1 manufactured in South Africa in July 2008 (Batch Code 82050179L1 250g and 900g) and a batch of Nido 1+ (Batch Code 81790181SO2E1M 900g) manufactured in June 2008 in which they detected traces of melamine.
Nestlé said that these products were absolutely safe for consumption and in the absence of any specific South African legislation for melamine in food, that the traces of melamine detected were more than 10 times lower than the WHO guidance level of health concern.
‘In the wake of the melamine crisis in China in mid September, Nestlé took total control over its milk supply chain in South Africa. Systematic melamine testing for all raw milk purchased in South Africa was immediately introduced and every batch of dairy products is now tested for melamine prior to release from the factory’ the statement said.
The company explained that testing led to the discovery of melamine in a number of samples of cattle feed which is predominantly used in winter, which it said explained the presence of melamine traces in these batches.
‘Consequently, Nestlé has also taken steps to ensure that the cattle feed used by its South African milk producers is melamine free. The safety and quality of its products is a non-negotiable priority for Nestlé’ the statement said.
