Police Have Not Ruled Out Tampering in Baby Fruit Purée Case as More Parents Report Symptoms

Israeli police say they still cannot determine whether a foreign substance was deliberately added to baby fruit purée products sold under the brand Prינוק, as three more parents from Tiberias, Holon and Rishon LeZion contacted the Health Ministry with similar complaints. The new reports add to four earlier complaints that were concentrated at two branches of the Zol Uvagadol supermarket chain in Jerusalem.

The Health Ministry is now examining whether the newly reported cases are linked to the original incident. The widening geographic spread has raised questions about whether the problem can really be tied to those two supermarket branches. The importer, Randi, said the ministry has told it the products are safe for consumers and can continue to be sold.

One mother from Rishon LeZion, Chana Soliman, said her 18-month-old daughter regularly eats Prינוק. She said that about a week and a half ago the child became lethargic and sleepy, kept slumping toward the sofa, and could not hold herself up. The toddler was taken by ambulance to a hospital emergency room, where doctors found nothing unusual and discharged her after one day. Soliman said, “When I saw the report I understood it was exactly the same symptoms that happened to my daughter,” and added that she would not bring the product home until the matter is clarified.

The police investigation is continuing. On Thursday, two branch managers from Zol Uvagadol were questioned, and investigators are reviewing security camera footage to determine whether someone tried to introduce a foreign substance into the product. Chief Supt. Adi Mizrahi Boaron, head of investigations and intelligence for the Jerusalem district’s Zion area, said police are treating the case seriously and have not ruled out any direction. She said the inquiry began after toddlers were hospitalized in an apathetic state, blood tests found a sedative substance used in medicines such as Klonex, and the purée they had eaten was tested as police opened a joint investigation with the Health Ministry.