nestle selling defective infant formula

From: INFACT Canada [mailto:ben@infactcanada.ca]
Sent: Friday, December 15, 2006 5:04 PM
To: info@infactcanada.ca
Subject: Nestle selling defective formula

December 15, 2006

Nestlé selling defective formula

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has warned Nestlé after its Good
Start with Iron formula was found to contain inadequate levels of nutrients.
A sample collected in May contained insufficient amounts of calcium and
phosphorus, which were also at levels lower than those listed on the tin’s
label. The FDA required amount of calcium is 60 milligrams per 100
kilocalories, and Nestlé’s product label claimed 64 milligrams. FDA tests
revealed the actual amount was between 58.2 and 58.6 milligrams.

The agency has posted a notice on its website about the defective formula,
but it has not been recalled. It is unclear why it took nearly seven months
for the results of a sample collected in May, and it is unkown how many
infants have been fed the nutritionally inadequate baby food.

Product errors in Nestlé’s infant formula are not infrequent. At the end of
last year, millions of Nestlé formula was pulled off the shelves in Europe
when it was found they were contaminated with ink. Months earlier Chinese
authorities had discovered that Nestlé formula in that country contained
dangerously high amounts of iodine.

The errors endemic to the process of formula manufacturing are one reason
why breastfeeding is the healthiest method of infant feeding. The
composition of breastmilk is always right, and changes to suit babies’ needs
as they grow. To minimize the health effects of these frequent product
errors, Nestlé should abide by the International Code of Marketing of
Breastmilk Substitutes