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A botulism scare that sparked global recalls of Fonterra milk products was a false alarm and there was never any danger to the public, New Zealand officials said on Wednesday.
The crisis led to infant formula being taken off shelves from China to Saudi Arabia earlier this month and damaged New Zealand’s “clean, green” reputation in key Asian markets.

But New Zealand’s Ministry of Primary Industries said a barrage of tests ordered after it sounded the alarm had confirmed the bug was clostridium sporogenes and not the potentially fatal clostridium botulinum, as originally indicated.
“It is therefore not capable of producing botulism-causing toxins,” the ministry said in a statement.
“There are no known food-safety issues associated with clostridium sporogenes, although at elevated levels certain strains may be associated with food spoilage.”
It said the initial tests that incorrectly pointed to botulism contamination were carried out by Fonterra and the ministry ordered a further 195 tests to check the findings, none of which came back positive for the bacteria.
“We sought additional testing at both local and international laboratories, seeking the most robust results we could get. Scientists used a range of methods – all came back negative for clostridium botulinum.”
The dairy industry accounts for about a quarter of New Zealand’s exports and ministry acting director-general Scott Gallacher said officials were right to issue a public warning early.
“We needed to act on what we knew at that time,” he said. “The information we had then said there was a food-safety risk to consumers and we moved quickly to address it.”
He said the ministry had informed overseas regulators about the test results and had recalled its public warning about the potential botulism risk from some Fonterra products.


China’s new baby milk scandal to trigger tighter cross-border e-commerce rules

Why Chinese parents pay more for infant formula

As Fonterra incident shows, openness is key to food safety

Fonterra and New Zealand applauded for transparency

Botulism milk powder scandal

Fonterra products free of botulism, says New Zealand ministry 

Customers shop for milk powder at a supermarket in Beijing. Photo: Reuters

Dairy giant Fonterra's products at the centre of a global contamination scare this month did not contain a bacteria that could cause botulism, and posed no food safety threat, New Zealand officials said on Wednesday. Photo: Reuters

Fonterra shuts down in Sri Lanka after ‘threats’ 

Police officers stand guard as local activists protest against alleged contaminated products in front of a Fonterra factory in Colombo. Photo: Xinhua

Policemen stand guard as local activists protest against the alleged contaminated products in front of a factory of New Zealand's Fonterra in Colombo, Sri Lanka, on Friday. Photo: Xinhua

Fonterra takes back 42 tonnes of milk powder

New Zealand Foreign Minister Murray McCully speaks to reporters in Beijing where he met Foreign Minister Wang Yi.Photo: AP

New Zealand dismisses Sri Lanka Fonterra milk scare 

A Sri Lankan woman walks past an advertisement of a Fonterra product in Colombo, Sri Lanka. Photo: AP

Fonterra starts inquiry into tainted products, New Zealand government to follow

A Fonterra plant near Hamilton, New Zealand. A review of how infant formula products became contaminated is expected to take six weeks. Photo: Reuters

Second brand of Fonterra-linked baby milk formula recalled in Hong Kong 

A recall notice for Karicare Gold+ Follow On Formula Stage 2 and other baby formula seen on a supermarket shelf in Wellington, New Zealand, last  Sunday. Photo: Xinhua

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