More than 700 employees at Airbus Atlantic are reported to have fallen ill after the company’s Christmas dinner, according to health authorities in France.

Agence Régionale de Santé (ARS) reported that the Airbus employees experienced vomiting and diarrhoea.

Contrary to the reported number, Airbus informed the BBC that only “around 100” individuals were affected. 

In a statement, the company stated its collaboration with ARS “to identify the cause of the illness and ensure this cannot happen again in the future.”

Airbus Atlantic has 13,000 employees in five countries and three continents as of January 1, 2022.

ARS did not provide specific details about the implicated food at the dinner held last week but mentioned that diners exhibited “clinical signs of vomiting or diarrhoea.” 

According to statements made to the AFP news agency, an investigation is underway to determine the source of the widespread food poisoning.

With an estimated business volume of more than €3.5 billion, Airbus Atlantic is the “new world number player in aerostructures market, number in pilot seats and in the top three” for premium passenger seats marketed under the STELIA Aerospace brand.

“As an Airbus wholly-owned subsidiary positioned at the heart of the Airbus industrial system,” Airbus Atlantic’s mission “is to drive competitiveness with the flexibility, speed, simplicity, and agility of a tier-1 aerostructure.”