French authorities have received a second report of an infant death, as the crisis over contaminated infant formula escalates, drawing in Nestle S.A., Danone, and Groupe Lactalis.

France's health ministry stated in a declaration on Thursday evening that both infants had consumed recalled formula. Health Minister Stéphanie Rist told French broadcaster BFM TV on Friday that a causal link between the deaths and the implicated products has not yet been established.

The Bordeaux prosecutor's office in France indicated that one of the infants had consumed the recalled Nestle Guigoz formula in early January. Test results showed this particular formula did not contain the Bacillus cereus bacteria linked to the recall. However, authorities are still awaiting results for cereulide toxin tests and the autopsy findings.

The prosecutor in Angers, western France, is also investigating the death of the second infant, who had likewise consumed Nestle formula.

A Nestle spokesperson said on Friday, "As the authorities have pointed out, at this stage there is no indication that these tragic events are linked to the consumption of our products." The spokesperson added that Nestle is closely monitoring the situation and will "cooperate fully with the authorities in a completely transparent manner."

Shares in both Nestle and Danone fell by as much as 1.7% during the trading session.

Separately, the health department of Belgium's Flanders region issued a statement saying an infant in the locality fell ill in early January after consuming contaminated Nestle infant dairy products.

The department stated the infant has fully recovered, and the relevant products have been recalled since January 5th. Spokesperson Joris Moonens said in the statement, "Through testing the infant's stool sample, we were able to confirm the illness was caused by contamination with cereulide toxin in a Nestle dairy product."

In this incident, Nestle is the most severely affected manufacturer, having pulled the related products from shelves in over 60 countries worldwide. However, in recent days, concerns over formula contamination have intensified further as Danone and Lactalis have also initiated recalls due to potential contamination.

At the request of Singapore's food safety regulator, Danone removed one product from its Dumex Dulac series, causing its stock to plunge on Wednesday and marking its largest single-day drop in over thirty years. The Singapore Food Agency also instructed local manufacturer SMC Nutrition to halt exports of some products that use the same raw material.