Coca Cola withdrew suspicious drinks from circulation

Most recently, media reported on Tuesday about a young man from Rijeka who suffered severe burns to his esophagus after drinking mineral water from the Austrian brand Römerquelle. Coca-Cola temporarily removed suspected products from circulation on Wednesday following orders from state regulators.

This is a batch of Coca-Cola Original Taste and two limited series of Römerquelle “Emotion Blueberry-Pomegranate” in the 330ml glass bottle, as the company announced according to the media. Even before this decision, individual shops and restaurants had begun to remove the affected drinks from their shelves. As a precaution, the largest Croatian retail chain Konzum has even removed all Coca-Cola products from sale.

Not available in Austria

The affected drink from Römerquelle is not available on the Austrian market, Coca-Cola Austria emphasized on Wednesday. The Römerquelle product “Emotion Blueberry-Pomegranate” in a 330ml glass bottle was manufactured for the Croatian market. According to the statement, Coca-Cola Austria has informed the Austrian authorities in detail about a thorough internal investigation, the analysis of which did not reveal any problems in the bottling. In addition, the company has sent samples to an independent, accredited laboratory for further testing. The Austrian authorities also took appropriate samples at the production site in Burgenland today to confirm safety. “We are in close contact with the company, the responsible food authority and the Agency for Health and Food Safety (AGES) to clarify the matter,” emphasized the Ministry of Health in response to an APA request.

The Croatian authorities sent information to the European Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed (RASFF) on Wednesday evening, but it does not yet contain any further information about the actual source of the illnesses. The EU member states will only be briefly informed about the topic. The RASFF system enables the authorities of the EU member states to react quickly and in a coordinated manner to health risks from food and feed, informed the Ministry of Health.

Falls across Croatia

Meanwhile, there were reports of additional new cases from other cities across Croatia. In Split, a man sought medical attention after drinking mineral water in a cafe. A similar case is said to have occurred in the Dalmatian city in mid-October. A suspected case was also reported from Karlovac, a city in central Croatia. The person concerned is said to have consumed a Römerquelle product, it was said. A patient who was treated on Tuesday evening in the hospital in Varaždin for minor damage to the mucous membrane in the throat stated that he had drunk Römerquelle, as was confirmed in the hospital.

All of the injured were suspected of having chemically caused mucous membrane injuries. The authorities said that in addition to the seriously injured young man, six other suspected cases were known in the capital Zagreb and Varaždin, and an investigation was ongoing. Croatian Health Minister Vili Beroš assured that the situation was under control. “There is no reason to panic, but caution is advised,” the minister said at a press conference on Wednesday morning.

The other affected people who went to the emergency room in Zagreb and Varaždin were diagnosed with minor injuries to the mucous membrane, and no one required inpatient hospital treatment. According to the Minister of Health, a connection to the consumption of drinks has so far been clearly established in two of these cases; the others are still being investigated. According to information from the Zagreb University Hospital, a connection with drinks has now been ruled out in three other cases.

The Croatian Coca-Cola subsidiary confirmed on Tuesday that the case in Rijeka was connected to a Römerquelle glass bottle. The company initially spoke of an “isolated case” and wanted to cooperate with the authorities in the investigation.

Croatian authorities launched an investigation, and the police were also called in alongside the health authorities. On Tuesday, the sanitary inspection in Rijeka took a total of 16 samples for analysis. The results are still pending. There is now speculation that the contamination of the drinks could be the result of an error in cleaning the production line.

The Minister of Health defended himself against criticism of insufficient information. We need to establish possible connections, but not scare the population, he said. “Once a certain connection is established, the public will be informed and until then it is recommended to drink water,” Beroš added. The authorities were criticized because the public was only informed about the incident on Tuesday, while the case in Rijeka had already occurred on Saturday. The young man had symptoms after a few sips of mineral water. He is still being treated in hospital and his condition is said to be stable.

A similar case in Rijeka was reported in May. A man also suffered chemical burns to his esophagus after consuming mineral water in a restaurant.

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