China part of worldwide Lactalis formula recall

French dairy giant Lactalis's baby formula contamination affects 37 batches of products sold on the China market, Beijing Evening News reported on Monday based on publicized information.

In early December, after the discovery of 20 salmonella infection cases in infants under six months, the health authorities in France announced a suspected salmonella bacteria contamination of Lactalis production and recalled 12 batches of its infant products.

Salmonella infection is dangerous for the young and elderly, causing symptoms including severe diarrhea, stomach cramps and vomiting.

Another five cases were found last week, including one baby who was fed infant product not on the list of the first recall.

Fearing that previous measures were not sufficient to manage the risk of contamination, the French Ministry for Economy and Finance published a broader list of 620 batches of Lactalis products to be recalled and banned from selling and export on Sunday.

Company spokesman Michel Nalet said nearly 7,000 tons of products were to be recalled worldwide, while the company was unable to know how much remained on the market or had been consumed, 21st Century News said quoting Agence France Presse.

China was on the list of countries affected and has had 37 batches of products involved, Beijing Evening News said.

Lactalis China announced Monday it will have a "precautionary recall" of six batches of its Celia baby formula sold in China, estimated to be a total of 3,208 boxes.

Soon after the first recall, the Certification and Accreditation Administration of the People's Republic of China suspended the registration statute of Lactalis's subsidiary, the Celia-Laiterie de Craon, on Dec 5. This means it has temporarily lost the qualification to export infant formula to China through official channels before it regains the certification.

Hu Xinyi contributed to the story.