The Ferrero factory in Arlon (Belgium), which alone accounts for 7% of Kinder’s worldwide production, has just closed its doors again after the detection, on June 29, of salmonella. This suspension of activity, which will last a month, comes almost a year after the detection of this same bacterium in several chocolates of the brand, which had given rise to hundreds of sick children all over Europe, including 81 In France.
Bacteria found in the environment
This time, the bacterium that can cause sometimes severe gastroenteritis was not found in chocolates, but in “the environment”, reports The Parisian. More specifically, it would be present in the “baseboards on the wall” according to a spokesperson for Ferrero France, the parent company. As a result, it was therefore decided to temporarily interrupt the production lines “as a preventive measure while carrying out the necessary cleaning and sanitation”.
Regarding chocolates, “no product has tested positive. Consumers should therefore not be worried,” added Ferrero France, who specified that “as a precautionary measure, no product will of course be delivered.” On the employee side, they will continue to be paid, as if there were no interruption.
A poorly cleaned factory?
As a reminder, after the Kinder scandal last year, the checks were reinforced, going up to ten per day. It is in this context that the bacterium could be detected. In the eyes of Quentin Guillemain, president of the association for children’s health, this discovery must be perceived as worrying. “A priori, the bacteria never disappeared from the site,” he said, blaming the possibility of a botched factory cleaning to quickly reopen.
Despite the concerns of the president of the association, the federal agency for the safety of the Belgian food chain (Afsca) assured that “no end product which could be suspect has reached the consumer”. A thorough investigation is underway. Same thing on the side of the Pasteur Institute in Paris. “We will be extra vigilant. If there is a start of an epidemic, we will know! said bacteria specialist François-Xavier Weill.