Fonterra is likely to face compensation claims from companies it supplied with tainted whey, says a law professor.
Eight companies have been identified as receiving the product, which has potentially contaminated thousands of cans of infant formula.
Ursula Cheer, a professor at the University of Canterbury, said compensation claims could be made over breach of contract for supplying faulty product. "I imagine they [Fonterra] are worrying about it right now. They are probably trying to settle it [out of court]."
Cheer said it was hard to quantify how much could be paid out and the public might never know unless it got to court. She said Fonterra's customers could have the potential to claim for pecuniary losses as well as loss of reputation.
If any babies were proved to have been sick from the contamination, the damages claims could also increase.