PAUL BIBBY
25/09/2008 12:00:01 AM
Source of Article: http://www.canberratimes.com.au/news/national/national/general/shops-warned-about-white-rabbit-lollies/1282102.aspx
THE NSW Food Authority is calling on
wholesalers and retailers to remove White Rabbit Creamy Candies milk-based lollies from shops after testing revealed the product
contained the chemical responsible for putting thousands of Chinese children in
hospital.
Tests carried out in
Food Standards Australia New Zealand
yesterday warned people against eating the product, which is sold by the bag at
dozens of Asian supermarkets, retailers and restaurants across
A Food Standards spokeswoman, Lydia Buchtmann, said the quantity of melamine found was 180
parts per million, enough to cause health problems if consumed in large
quantities but "not from just a few lollies".
"A couple is fine - it's the cumulative
effect that could cause problems," she said.
She said staff from the NSW authority had
begun calling the importers and wholesalers of the lollies
to find out how widely the product had been distributed.
NSW Health said melamine poisoning resulted
in sufferers becoming lethargic and generally unwell as their renal function
became impaired, with tests needed to obtain a definitive diagnosis.
In China four children died and 53,000 have
been put in hospital after taking baby formula which had large quantities of
melamine, used to provide an artificially high protein reading during testing.
Food Standards issued a statement earlier
this week to try to damp down concerns over the presence of Chinese dairy
products in
However, on Tuesday the Herald found more
than five Chinese products with milk powder or dairy-based products, including
the White Rabbit lollies, at a Chinese supermarket.
The shop's owner said they had arrived in the past two or three months.
The quarantine service said food imported
from
with Jonathan Dart
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