Companies have been scrambling to establish independent testing of their products after it emerged that Chinese testing was unreliable.
The EU banned Chinese milk products and products containing more than 50 per cent Chinese milk in 2002 due to concerns about a lack of industry regulation, but despite this, there is still a risk that Chinese milk products have been used as ingredients in bakery and snack items.
Koala biscuits
Earlier this week, Lotte Koala biscuits became the latest product in Europe to be withdrawn from sale due to raised levels of melamine, after tests in the Netherlands found them to contain 4.98mg per kilogram, almost twice as much as the EU’s 2.5mg limit. This prompted the UK government to also recall the biscuits, which had been distributed to Chinese supermarkets and other independent retailers across the country.
Meanwhile, the Dutch Food Safety Authority (VWA) released a statement which stressed that the chances of becoming ill from consuming the biscuits were very slim.
“Only with daily consumption of two kilograms of the biscuits will children enter the danger zone,” it said.
This conclusion is based on a theoretical study conducted by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) to test the EU’s established tolerated daily intake level of melamine. EFSA released its results last week stating that in its opinion it is safe to consume up to 0.5mg of melamine per kilogram of bodyweight daily.
Internet rumours
Kraft Foods also became caught up in the scare after rumours spread on the internet and by text messaging that its Oreo biscuits contained Chinese milk powder, prompting the company to issue a statement denying the accusations. It explained that no Chinese milk ingredients are used in any of its products produced or sold outside Asia, although it is testing some of its Chinese-made products.
With reference to Oreo biscuits in particular, it said: “There have been questions about the ingredients used in our Oreo products made in China. Oreo products do not contain Chinese milk ingredients, no matter where they are made or sold.”
Nestlé milk powders
Taiwan’s Department of Health was erring on the side of caution this week when it asked Nestlé to withdraw its Neslac and KLIM brand milk products even though the Department of Health itself had acknowledged that they were safe in terms of internationally recognised safe levels for melamine. This prompted Nestlé to issue a statement to reassure its customers that the presence of melamine at such a low level is common and harmless.
It said: “The 0.05 ppm detection limit currently applied in Taiwan is up to 50 times below recognized and accepted international standards.”
In the EU, all Chinese products containing more than 15 per cent milk, or where the percentage of milk content cannot be established, are being examined for melamine. French authorities have gone a step further, requiring that all products containing Chinese dairy ingredients are withdrawn from sale.
Other products which have been withdrawn following detection of high levels of melamine include White Rabbit Creamy Candies, Unilever’s Lipton Milk Tea and Mr. Brown 3-in-1 instant coffee.
Four babies have died in China and approximately 53,000 children have become ill after consuming milk powder tainted with the chemical.