Chinese state television aired bribery allegations against Dumex, French food company Danone’s (BN.EPA) baby food brand, prompting a quick response from Danone on Monday stating it would investigate the claims immediately, Financial Times reported. The CCTV report quoted a former Dumex sales manager in the city of Tianjin claiming the company pays hundreds of thousands of renminbi each year to bribe doctors and nurses in Tianjin hospitals to feed newborns Dumex infant formula. Danone was also one of six mostly foreign baby formula makers that faced US$114 million (RMB669 million) in fines from China’s government in August for engaging in allegedly anti-competitive pricing practices.
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