Baby Formula Recalled As Botulism Sickens PA Child

A brand of baby formula has been recalled as botulism has sickened at least one child in Pennsylvania and three nationally, the Food and Drug Administration said.

Nara Organics has recalled both their Powdered Infant Formula and their Whole Milk Infant Formula (700g and 400 g). The products were distributed across the country in Targets, on Target.com, and on Nara.com from July 2025 to June 2026.

The FDA contacted Nara on June 12 after receiving details of three infant botulism cases from the CDC.

In addition to Pennsylvania, the infants were hospitalized in California and Washington. There are no reported deaths, the FDA said.

Officials added that while all three infantas had drank Nara baby formula just before being sickened, tests of Nara products have not yet turned up positive for C. botulinum.

When those botulism spores are ingested, they can produce botulinum neurotoxins in the gut of infants. It's considered rare, but is potentially fatal when spores colonize the intestinal track.

Food safety experts say the issue should never have happened and that systemic change is needed.

“Mercifully, no one has died," food safety attorney William Marler said in a statement. "But a recall after the fact is not a food safety system, it is a bad apology...I want to know why we test finished formula for botulism only after babies get sick instead of before a single can ships. And I want to know why, when a baby survives a formula-related illness, the manufacturer is under no obligation to tell the FDA at all.”

Symptoms include constipation, poor feeding, ptosis (drooping eyelid), sluggish pupils, low muscle tone, difficulty sucking and swallowing, weak or altered cry, generalized weakness, respiratory difficulty, and possibly respiratory arrest.