Investigation underway as hundreds of parents complain new Danone Aptamil milk making babies ill

Danone says it is looking into reports following hundreds of complaints from parents that a new Aptamil baby milk formula is making infants ill.

Parents took to social media to express anger after babies reacted negatively to three new milk recipes.

  • What are parents complaining about?

Hundreds of parents have contacted Danone and Aptamil via social media to criticise the new recipes.

Uploaded pictures seemed to show milk powder failing to dissolve when mixed with liquid, leaving a lumpy and congealed consistency behind.

Parents reported their babies as being sick and suffering from diarrhea having drunk the milk.

Others said their children refused to take the milk.

The milk power did not appear to dissolve. Credit: Angela Stainton/Facebook

  • Which formulas have been affected?

On a post on its Facebook page, Danone said the formulas of three Aptamil milks had been changed recently.

These were: Aptamil First Infant Milk; Aptamil Follow On Milk powder and Aptamil Growing Up Milk.

  • What have Danone said?

Aptamil says many babies have transitioned well onto the new formulas. Credit: Emma Marsh/Facebook

Danone said it was "very concerned" to hear of babies being unsettled by the new formulas.

The firm said many infants had "smoothly transitioned" onto the new milks, but admitted the recent formulas were "more sensitive" to temperature and urged parents to follow the on-pack instructions carefully.

"We also appreciate how distressing it can be when babies are unwell and want to support in any way we can," a Danone statement read.

"We apologise if any of our valued customers feel let down by our brand, we never wanted parents to feel this way.

"The safety and quality of our products is our number one priority and we would like to reassure parents that all our formula milks go through strict safety and quality checks and we can confirm they are safe to consume."

A statement later added: "We have changed our mixing instructions slightly and, with hindsight, we could have made that clearer.

"But nevertheless, we understand that despite following the instructions, some parents are still experiencing mixing problems."

  • What are concerned parents advised to do?

While it investigates the complaints, Danone says it has set up a free dedicated one-to-one helpline where parents can call for advice.

It encourage those concerned about the products in question to get in touch.

Parents in the UK are advised to call 0800 996 1000, pressing option 0 followed by option 1.