Multi-country foodborne event caused by cereulide in infant formula products

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Source: ECDC Risk Assessments

Original: https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/en/publications-data/multi-country-foodborne-event-ca...

Published: Thu, 19 Feb 2026 14:56:02 +0100

A foodborne event caused by cereulide toxin in infant formula has occurred in several EU countries and the United Kingdom.[1] Cereulide is a toxin produced by the bacterium Bacillus cereus, which mainly causes loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, lethargy and diarrhea.[2][3][5] Symptoms can appear within 30 minutes to 6 hours after consumption, and infants are at risk of more serious complications, such as dehydration.[3] Contamination was detected in batches made using base powder from Ireland (RASFF notification 2026.0598) or arachidonic acid oil from China, detected since December 2025.[1][2][4] Affected products, including initial and follow-up infant formula of brands such as Aptamil, Milumil or Happy Mimi 1, were withdrawn from the market in Slovakia and dozens of countries.[1][3][5][6][7] Public health authorities are reviewing the recall and customers can return products to retailers.[1][5] There is no global safety limit for cereulide, in France it has been reduced to 0.014 micrograms per kilogram of a child's body weight.[4]