The European bottler of Coca-Cola in Belgium announced, this Monday, January 27, a massive recall of products in Europe due to too high a chlorate content.
The recall concerns returnable glass cans and bottles of Coca-Cola, Sprite, Fanta, Fuze Tea, Minute Maid, Nalu, Royal Bliss and Tropico, in Belgium, the Netherlands, Great Britain, Germany, France and in Luxembourg, in circulation since the end of November. These products carry “a production code ranging from 328 GE to 338 GE (inclusive)”.
“We do not have a precise figure, but it is clear that it is a considerable quantity,” Coca-Cola Europacific Partners Belgium told AFP. “The majority of affected and unsold products have already been removed from store shelves and we continue to take steps to remove all remaining products from the market,” the company said, “in contact with the relevant authorities in each of the markets concerned”. The bottler, who has apologized, asks not to consume the products concerned. They can be returned to the point of sale for a refund.
A potential health problem for children
“At our production site in Ghent, we carry out tests as part of our control procedures and regulatory compliance. These checks have identified high levels of chlorate,” the company explained.
According to the European Commission websitechlorate in food comes from chlorine disinfectants used in water treatment and food processing, with drinking water being by far the largest contributor.
In a 2015 scientific opinion, the European Food Safety Authority estimated that long-term exposure to chlorate in food could pose a potential health problem for children, particularly for children with a mild deficiency. or moderate in iodine. “However, even considering the highest estimated levels, it is unlikely that a single day’s total intake would exceed the recommended level for consumers in all age groups.”