Ministry warns consumers against Kinder Surprise chocolate egg

Doha: The Ministry of Public Health warns consumers against Kinder Surprise chocolate egg product of Belgium origin, expiration date between 11/7/2022 and 7/10/2022, on receiving information on the possibility of contamination with salmonella bacteria. The manufacturer has notified about the withdrawal of the product, which was distributed in the UK after 57 cases of poisoning were suspected there.

The Ministry of Public Health has taken precautionary measures making sure that the product with the mentioned dates and origin is not available in shops or markets, as well as the Ministry of Public Health has circulated to suppliers to withdraw the suspected product from the markets if it exists, noting that the import of this type of chocolate from Belgium is carried out on a very small scale.

The Ministry also directed its inspectors to take random samples of the product regardless of the country of origin or the expiration date and refer them for laboratory analysis as an additional precautionary measure.  Ports have also been circulated to withdraw samples from the coming shipments and analyze them to verify their safety, validity and conformity to the relevant requirements.

Salmonella is one of the bacteria that causes food poisoning in the event of eating contaminated foods.

The Italian confectionary group Ferrero has recalled Kinder Surprise chocolate eggs from British shelves after a possible link was found to dozens of reported cases of salmonella.

The recall affects single and multipack Kinder Surprise eggs, a popular treat marketed at children containing small collectible toys inside a chocolate shell.

"We are voluntarily recalling selected batches of Kinder Surprise as a precautionary step, since we have become aware of a possible link to a number of reported cases of salmonella," the recall notice said.

Ferrero said the affected chocolate was manufactured in Belgium and the recall may be extended to other countries.