Ministry of Health (MOH)’s Director of Public Health, Dr. Mariam Al-Hajiri, said that the milk powder (Similac Gain Plus) for three-year olds imported for the Kingdom of Bahrain’s local markets from Irish and not New Zealand origins, and after laboratory testing of specimens was found to be free from the toxic clostridium botulinum bacteria, and she assured citizens and residents that according to the World Health Organization (WHO)’s that bacteria-contaminated milk had been exported to the following countries: Australia, Colombia, China, Malaysia, New Zealand, KSA, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
As a precautionary measure, the Public Health Directorate in the Ministry of Health assigned a team of inspectors to conduct a field survey targeting the importer’s warehouses, hypermarkets, some pharmacies and local milk plants which use serum in their products. The teams obtained random specimens and subsequent lab tests proved that the milk is safe for human consumption and free from harmful bacteria.
All inspectors at points of import have been advised to intercept any product which contains protein serum and to retain it so as to conduct all the necessary lab tests before its distribution in local markets, especially products from New Zealand or from countries that had imported bacteria-contaminated serum.