The Barry Callebaut group, which supplies cocoa and chocolate products to the food industry, reported that no products with salmonella reached the Brazilian market.
This Monday (8), the Swiss giant resumed part of production at its factory in Belgium, considered the largest in the world, after having remained closed for six weeks due to contamination by salmonella.
The company has three factories in Brazil, two in Bahia and one in Minas Gerais, which operate in the production of cocoa and chocolate. In the country, there was no interruption in production.
The group supplies cocoa and chocolate-based products to numerous companies in the food sector.
Gourmet Sales Executive in South America at Barry Callebaut, Bruno Scarpa stated that the Belgian factory restarted its operation after a detailed process of cleaning the lines and following all the quality standards established by the group.
“No product with salmonella came to the Brazilian market and today we are working to minimize impacts with a possible shortage, since the factory was out of operation for a few weeks to deal with the issue with the utmost care”, he said.
The executive says that the company is still studying whether there may be a lack of products on the market. “However, we are confident, as we have good stocks of products and replacement alternatives to offer our customers.”
When contacted, Anvisa (Health Surveillance Agency) did not respond until the publication of this text.
The Nestlé and Mondelez brands reported that they do not use raw material produced in Europe, so there is no risk that the companies have acquired a contaminated batch.
Also according to Nestlé, the cocoa derivatives received by the company in the country are mostly originated from its factories in Brazil, located in Ilhéus and Itabuna, thus having no impact on production. Hershey’s brand did not respond.
Factory in Belgium resumed operation this Monday (8)
Three production lines, out of a total of 28, resumed operation in Wieze (northwest of Brussels) and the first delivery, of liquid chocolate, will take place this Monday, Korneel Warlop, a spokesman for the company, told AFP, adding that the other lines will remain closed for cleaning.
“In the coming weeks we will be able to start more lines with the aim of returning to a normal level of production. However, we are cautious as the cleaning and sanitizing process is taking a long time,” said the spokesperson.
“Ensuring food safety and the safety of our employees remains a top priority.”
The presence of the bacteria was detected in late June in a batch produced in Wieze, with lecithin as a source of contamination according to the factory, which immediately stopped production and blocked all products produced after June 25.
In early July, the company reported that no contaminated chocolate had reached consumers or left Europe.
The Federal Food Safety Agency “continues to monitor the resumption of production by Barry Callebaut, who must ensure that consumers and commercial customers are protected from any risk,” Warlop said.
Based in Zurich, the Swiss group is the world number one in cocoa and chocolate-based preparations for numerous companies in the food sector.
According to the 2021/2022 balance sheet, its annual sales reached 2.2 million tons in this period.
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