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Melamine-Tainted Chinese Candy Shows Up in U.S.

Suspect White Rabbit Creamy Candy found in at least two states

By Lisa Wade McCormick
ConsumerAffairs.com

October 2, 2008

Candy lovers beware. Melamine-tainted candy — imported from China — is now showing up on store shelves in the United States.

Officials in California and Connecticut confirm they have found White Rabbit Creamy Candy contaminated with melamine in their states.The Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection said the tainted candy was primarily found in Asian markets. But officials warn the contaminated candy could be on store shelves nationwide.

Melamine is the chemical at the heart of the Chinese-milk scandal, which is blamed for the deaths of four babies and the illnesses of more than 53,000 other children in that country.

Earlier this month, Chinese officials discovered melamine in powdered infant formula made in that country. It has since been found in dozens of other products. Authorities say some Chinese dairy plants added melamine to milk products to make them appear to have higher protein levels.

Melamine is used to make plastic and fertilizers. The chemical became a feared household word last year after the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) discovered it in Chinese-imported wheat gluten to make pet food. Thousands of pets in the United States became sick or died after eating the melamine-tainted pet food. Doctors say melamine can cause kidney stones and lead to kidney failure.

Meanwhile, the fallout from the Chinese-milk scandal continues to spread.

A U.S. distributor of White Rabbit Creamy Candy last Friday recalled the products because of melamine contamination. Queensway Foods Company Inc. said it distributed the candy in California, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Minnesota, New York, Oregon, Texas and Washington.

The company said the candy is sold in 8 or 16 oz packages. All other flavors of White Rabbit Candy, including Assorted (Chocolate, Coconut, and Coffee), Red Bean, Coffee, Corn, Lychee, Mango and Strawberry are sold in 7 oz. packages. The packages have a logo of a white rabbit on the front with the words "White Rabbit".

U.S. officials aren't the only ones who have found melamine in White Rabbit Creamy Candy.

Infant Formula • FDA Blocks Chinese Products Over Melamine Fears • Melamine Scandal Continues to Expand • FDA's Melamine Decision Scares Consumers • DeLauro Raps FDA On Melamine Risk Guidelines • FDA Issues Report On Melamine and Food Safety • Melamine-Tainted Chinese Candy Shows Up in U.S. • Hershey's Says Chocolates Are Safe from Chinese Melamine Scandal • Cadbury Recalls Chinese-Made Chocolates Due to Melamine • Melamine Scare Spreads to Mr. Brown Coffee • Chinese Gorillas Fall Ill as Melamine Scandal Widens • FDA Updates Chinese Infant Formula Warning • Asian Baby Death Toll From Infant Formula Rises • FDA Issues Warning on Chinese-Made Infant Formula • Texas Stops Sale of Mislabeled Infant Formula • Texas Halts Contaminated Infant Formula Shipments To Mexico • Chinese Infant Formula Alert

Singapore's Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority last week recalled those after the products tested positive for melamine. It said other Chinese-made food also tested positive for melamine, including Dutch Lady-brand banana and honeydew flavored milk, Silang-brand potato crackers, and two kinds of puffed rice balls.

The New Zealand Food Safety Authority also found high levels of melamine in the White Rabbit candy.

And the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) warned consumers not to eat, distribute, or sell White Rabbit candy because of possible melamine contamination.

Earlier this week, another brand of candy tested positive for melamine. The British maker of the popular Cadbury candies recalled 11 types of Chinese-made chocolates because of melamine contamination.

Those products were exported to Taiwan, Hong Kong, Australia, the Pacific island of Nauru and Christmas Island in the Indian Ocean.

But the Hershey Company, which manufactures and sells Cadbury chocolates in the United States, said it does not buy powered milk or other milk ingredients from China.

"All Hershey products use the highest-quality ingredients and are completely safe," the candy giant said in a written statement. "This includes CADBURY products manufactured and distributed in the United States by The Hershey Company."

The recalled Cadbury chocolates are:

• Cadbury Dark Chocette, 45 grams;
• Cadbury Dark Chocette, 80 grams;
• Cadbury Eclairs, 180 grams;
• Cadbury Dairy Milk Chocolate Pumpkin, 150 grams;
• Cadbury Dark Chocolate, 40 grams;
• Cadbury Dairy Milk Chocolate Bulk Pack, 5 kilograms;
• Cadbury Dark Chocolate Bulk Pack, 5 kilograms;
• Cadbury Dairy Milk Hazelnut Chocolate Bulk Pack, 5 kilograms;
• Cadbury Dairy Milk Cookies Chocolate Bulk Pack, 5 kilograms;
• Cadbury Hazelnut Praline Chocolate (2008 Chinese New Year), 312 grams;
• Cadbury Dairy Milk Chocolate (2008 Chinese New Year), 300 grams.

Cadbury said it is implementing new food safety and quality checks at its Beijing plant.

In related news, the Taiwanese company that makes Mr. Brown instant coffee and milk tea recalled seven of its products last week because of possible melamine contamination. The recalled products are:

• Mr. Brown Mandheling Blend Instant Coffee (3-in-1)
• Mr. Brown Arabica Instant Coffee (3-in-1)
• Mr. Brown Blue Mountain Blend Instant Coffee (3-in-1)
• Mr. Brown Caramel Macchiato Instant Coffee (3-in-1)
• Mr. Brown French Vanilla Instant Coffee (3-in-1)
• Mr. Brown Mandhling Blend instant Coffee (2-in-1)
• Mr. Brown Milk Tea (3-in-1)

Some animals have even become sick after drinking tainted Chinese milk products. Two gorillas in China that drank the melamine-tainted milk powder now show signs of kidney stones.

Doctors at Hangzhou Wildlife World say the gorillas — ages one and three — have been diagnosed with crystallization in their urine.

"The crystallization now is very small, but it will grow bigger and then block the urine," Zhang Xu, a doctor from the animal hospital where the two gorillas were being treated, was quoted as saying. "No visible stones have been found so far."

The FDA said it is not aware of any illnesses in the United States linked to the Chinese-made milk products. It also assured consumers the infant formula in the United States is safe. U.S. companies that make infant formula are not importing formula or sourcing milk-based materials from China, the agency said.

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