The finding expands the practical scope of the recall beyond individual stores or national markets. Regulators, distributors and retailers must determine whether affected batches remain in circulation, including through online sales channels. The WHO said the event has disrupted trade and supply chains and could lead to additional recalls if more affected batches or product categories are identified.

What the WHO reported

The WHO said the event dates back to December 10, 2025. Its February 25 status update said products subject to recall had been distributed across 99 countries and territories.

The contamination involves arachidonic-acid oil used in infant formula and in related products, rather than a finding that all infant formula in those markets is contaminated. The available notice identifies the hazard as cereulide toxin and describes the incident as a multi-country food-safety event.

The source packet does not establish the final number of affected products. It also does not provide separate epidemiological evidence establishing illnesses or deaths connected to the event. Those figures should not be inferred from the geographic reach of the recall.

Why retail and online checks matter

The WHO called for the effectiveness of recalls to be checked at the retail and distribution levels. It specifically included online sales, where a product can remain available outside the physical stores and supply routes initially reviewed by regulators.

That means the response depends not only on manufacturers and national food-safety authorities identifying affected batches, but also on sellers and distributors removing recalled products from the markets they serve. For consumers, the immediate issue is whether products covered by a recall have been removed consistently across stores, warehouses and online listings.

The international distribution footprint also makes coordination important. A product or ingredient can move through cross-border supply chains before a national authority issues or verifies a recall. The WHO’s warning that further affected batches or product categories could be identified means the scope of the response may still change.

What happens next

National food-safety regulators and infant-formula manufacturers are expected to continue recall and verification activity, while retailers, distributors and online sellers check their inventories and listings. The WHO’s stated focus is the effectiveness of those recalls across the supply chain.

The February 25 notice is a status report, not a declaration that the incident has been fully resolved. The supplied record does not include a newer product-specific international recall notice or a final tally of affected products. It therefore supports reporting the confirmed distribution reach—99 countries and territories—but not a broader claim about every product or market in those locations.

For the moment, the central public-health and consumer-protection question is whether recalled products have been removed wherever they were distributed. The continuing checks will determine whether the known recall has reached physical and digital points of sale and whether additional products must be withdrawn.

The international distribution has expanded the reach of a food-safety response involving recalls, product testing, traceability work and risk communication. WHO said the overall public-health risk was moderate, while emphasizing that infants are especially vulnerable and that the full scope of the event is not yet known.

From Jan. 1 through Feb. 25, 2026, countries reported 144 suspected and confirmed cases across 10 countries in three WHO regions. Belgium had eight laboratory-confirmed intoxications linked to implicated products as of Feb. 25.

Those figures should not be read as 144 laboratory-confirmed cases. WHO said countries used different case definitions and surveillance methods, making the reported totals less directly comparable.

How the recall developed

The first recalls began Dec. 10, 2025. The products at issue included infant formula and other nutritional products containing the implicated arachidonic-acid oil, which was contaminated with cereulide toxin.

Cereulide is the specific contaminant identified in the WHO report. The report describes implicated products and recalled batches, but distribution to a country does not mean that every product, batch or brand sold there was contaminated.

WHO said recalled products had moved through 99 countries and territories, creating a cross-border challenge for national food-safety authorities, retailers and supply chains. Officials must determine where implicated batches were sent, while testing and surveillance help establish whether reported illnesses are connected to those products.

The agency said recall effectiveness and product traceability remained uneven. Additional affected batches could still be identified, and the full root cause of the contamination had not been established.

Why the international response matters

Infant formula is a critical product for families who depend on it, and a disruption can have consequences beyond the withdrawal of a single item from store shelves. WHO warned that localized shortages could occur in places where consumers rely heavily on particular products.

The distribution figure also illustrates why national action alone may not be enough. A product or ingredient can cross multiple borders before authorities identify a problem, requiring information to move between governments and food-safety networks.

The response involves WHO, the International Food Safety Authorities Network, national food-safety authorities and the European Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed. These systems support information-sharing, distribution tracing and action on products identified as implicated.

WHO’s moderate risk assessment reflects several factors described in its report: the vulnerability of infants, uncertainty about how widely affected products were distributed and gaps in the detection of cases. The assessment is not a declaration that the event has ended or that all risks have been resolved.

What happens next

Recalls, testing, traceability work and risk communication were still ongoing in WHO’s March 13 notice. Authorities are expected to continue matching implicated batches to distribution records, investigating reported illnesses and communicating with consumers and the food-supply sector.

Investigators also must clarify the contamination’s full cause and scope. WHO said the complete root cause and traceability picture remained under investigation, leaving open the possibility that further affected batches or cases could emerge.

The case total is based on situation data through Feb. 25, while the WHO notice was published March 13. The available report therefore provides a snapshot of an active international recall rather than a final count or a completed investigation.

For consumers, retailers and public-health officials, the practical issue remains identifying the specific products and batches covered by official recall information in each market. The presence of recalled products in 99 countries and territories does not establish that every formula product in those markets is affected, but it does show the scale of the traceability and communication task still facing authorities.