Kellogg's has defended its cereals after authorities in Denmark banned the sale of 18 of the company's breakfast cereals and cereal bars.
Kellogg's has defended its
cereals after authorities in Denmark banned the sale of 18 of the company's
breakfast cereals and cereal bars. On Wednesday, officials at the Danish
Veterinary and Food Administration announced that the sale of the enriched
Kellogg's products was banned, saying they could damage the health of children
and pregnant women. The company, which expressed incredulity at the decision,
had hoped to enrich 18 breakfast foods and cereal bars with iron, calcium,
vitamin B6 and folic acid, just as they already do in many countries. However,
the Danes said that Kellogg’s wanted to include "toxic" doses,
which, if eaten regularly, could damage children's livers and kidneys and harm
fetuses in pregnant women.
This is the first time that Danish authorities have rejected foods enriched
with vitamins and minerals since a European Union ruling in 2003 forced them to
embrace such additives. The Danish agency said it had based its decision on
"a scientific evaluation of (food) safety." Although Denmark's
government has authorized food producers to add vitamin supplements to their
products, Consumer Affairs Minister Henriette Kjaer supported the agency's
decision. She said: "In this case, the experts deem that 18 products could
put consumers at risk, and that is why, in my opinion, we cannot let them be
distributed on the market." Denmark's National Consumer Agency, which has
traditionally fought to keep additives out of Danish food, also said it was
pleased with the decision to block the products. Gitte Gross from the agency
commented: "It is very important that we take this case very seriously
because supplements are not candies. One must be careful not to consume too much
because they are harmful in large quantities."
The rejection was decided last month after a government laboratory conducted
a scientific examination of ingredient lists provided by the company. The
company responded that it had added vitamins and other nutrients to their
products since the 1930s and that its products enriched by other ingredients
would remain on sale. Unlike many other countries, Denmark does not have
recommended daily allowances of nutrients. Chris Wermann, director of corporate
affairs for Kellogg's in Europe, said: "The extra B6 and folic acid
accounted for a quarter of a person's daily allowance, and the calcium and iron
just 17%. It is quite clear from nutritionists that diets around the globe are
deficient in vitamins and minerals. We are quite worried about the Danish
authorities challenging this. We don't believe there is any danger at all. There
is every reason for people to have these." He added that details of added
ingredients were labelled clearly on products and were well within recognised
international guidelines. The company is planning to have further discussions
with the Danish authorities.
Read the Danish Veterinary and Food Administration press
release.