6th August 2022 – (Hong Kong) On 4th August, the Centre for Food Safety (CFS) of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department urged the public not to consume two kinds of Häagen-Dazs ice cream from France, because the products may be contaminated with a pesticide, ethylene oxide, which is not authorised by the European Union (EU).
Häagen-Dazs announced that Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed (RASFF) of the European Commission has notified that another batch of ice cream that may be contaminated with a pesticide, ethylene oxide (which is not authorised by the EU) was also imported into Hong Kong, involving more flavours. The importer said that Hong Kong Häagen-Dazs has taken the responsibility of food safety control, and the affected products have not been circulated in the market.
The newly announced batches involved include the Häagen-Dazs Vanilla Caramel Brownie with the expiration date on 29th May, 2023, Belgian Chocolate & Strawberry Pint with the expiration date on 15th June 2023, Vanilla Raspberry Ice Cream Family Pack and stick bars with expiration on 26th and 22nd May 26, 2023 respectively.
Häagen-Dazs emphasised that food quality and safety are the primary consideration, and its products do not use any “ethylene oxide”, and apologised for the doubts caused to customers by the incident.
Meanwhile, according to Times of Israel, the Israeli importer of General Mills products announced a recall on Thursday of several Haagen-Dazs ice cream products after traces of a toxic chemical were discovered.
The chemical 2-Chloroethanol was found in the vanilla flavouring of Haagen-Dazs ice cream produced in France. If consumed, the toxin can cause nausea, vomiting and diarrhea.
Founded by Polish-Jewish refugees in New York, the popular ice cream brand already suffered a recall in July, when traces of a carcinogenic substance were found in their products.
The Health Ministry on Thursday instructed the public to refrain from consuming the following products:
Belgian Chocolate 473ml (use by 30/05/2023; barcode 74570610051; made in France); Macadamia Nut Brittle 473ml (use by 04/06/2023; barcode 74570174003; made in France); Vanilla Caramel Brownie 473ml (use by 01/06/2023; barcode 3415581187113; made in France); and Vanilla Caramel Almond 80ml (use by 01/06/2023; barcode 3415587403057; made in France)