Cadbury, the famous chocolates maker had earlier recalled 11 chocolate types, including Dairy Milk chocolate from mainland China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Australia because of fears of melamine contamination and as a precautionary step pending further supply of fresh product.
Last week Cadbury said three factories from which it sources its dairy ingredient supplies in China had been tested by the government and no melamine had been found, but further tests had revealed some doubts so the recall was ordered.
So far, Health Ministry of Malaysia and Cadbury Malaysia have not made any press statement regarding the recall of their products in Malaysia.
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From Reuters
Cadbury withdraws China chocolate on melamine concern
HONG KONG/LONDON, Sept 29 (Reuters) - British confectionery group Cadbury Plc said on Monday it was withdrawing all of its 11 chocolate products made in Beijing on concern over the possibility of contamination with melamine in its Chinese plant.
The London-based group said its products, including Dairy Milk chocolate, were being recalled from mainland China and the export markets of Taiwan, Hong Kong and Australia as a precautionary step pending further supply of fresh product.
A growing list of Chinese milk and milk-related products have been taken off shelves around the world in recent weeks after it came to light that some milk had been contaminated with melamine which led to thousands affected and four deaths.
Melamine is a relatively cheap industrial chemical that can be used to cheat protein quality checks in milk and a week ago the Chinese health ministry said 104 people were seriously ill and close to 40,000 others were affected by contaminated milk.
"The withdrawal is due to concern about the possibility of melamine contamination in our chocolate," said a Cadbury spokesman based at its London headquarters.
Last week Cadbury said three factories from which it sources its dairy ingredient supplies in China had been tested by the government and no melamine had been found, but further tests had revealed some doubts so the recall was ordered.
"We believe it is appropriate to take a precautionary step to withdraw from the market all of our Cadbury chocolate products that have been manufactured in Beijing, pending further supply of fresh product," the group said in a statement.
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From BBC News | Asia-Pacific
Melamine found in Cadbury goods
Preliminary tests have found melamine in Cadbury's Chinese-made chocolates, the company says.
At least 50,000 Chinese babies have fallen ill and four been killed by milk tainted with the industrial chemical.
Cadbury had earlier recalled 11 chocolate types from mainland China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Australia because of fears of contamination.
It remains unclear how much melamine was in the recalled products, a Cadbury spokesman told the BBC.
"It's early days, as these are preliminary findings from the tests," the spokesman said.
He emphasised that the only goods affected were those made in the company's Beijing factory, and not those produced in the UK or elsewhere.
China's reputation for food safety has nosedived since the revelations last month that milk products poisoned by melamine were responsible for causing renal problems in babies who drank the milk formula.
In mainland China, lawyers and local rights groups are seeking to support families affected by the scandal, possibly by suing dairies or officials who failed to disclose the problem.
But many say they are facing pressure from the authorities to abandon their efforts, blaming government sensitivity.
Chinese dairy worker monitors production at a plant in Wuhan
China says it has acted firmly to prevent further contamination
"About two dozen of the lawyers have called these past days to say they want to quit the volunteer advice group," Beijing lawyer Li Fangping told Reuters news agency.
"Some of them said that they or their offices were told they would face serious repercussions if they stayed involved," he said.
In a statement issued by its Singapore office, UK-based Cadbury said preliminary tests had "cast doubt on the integrity of a range of our products manufactured in China".
The products are the latest in a list of China-made foods and drinks that have been removed from shelves around the world in the wake of the scandal.
In Jakarta, the Food and Drug Monitoring Agency said on Monday that it had found traces of melamine in chocolate and biscuit products apparently made in China by Kraft Foods and Mars.
The two companies said they were investigating the claims, although their products had earlier been cleared of melamine tainting.
Some reports raised the possibility the products - including Oreo wafers, M&Ms and Snickers - could be counterfeit.
"We have asked our trade partners and retailers to suspend the sales of our products in accordance to the agency's order," the Mars spokesman in Indonesia, Bondan Ardi, told the Associated Press on Monday.
The companies involved said they would conduct their own tests.
The scandal came to light earlier this month when baby milk powder from the Sanlu Group was found to contain the industrial chemical melamine.
Since then, at least 22 other companies have been implicated.
Melamine is used in making plastics and is high in nitrogen, which makes products appear to have a higher protein content.
Health experts say that ingesting small amounts does no harm but sustained use can cause kidney stones and renal failure, especially among the young.
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From ABC News
Cadbury Pulls Melamine-Laced Chocolate From China
British candy maker Cadbury pulls chocolates made in China after tests find melamine
By MIN LEE Associated Press Writer
HONG KONG September 29, 2008 (AP)
British candy maker Cadbury announced a recall Monday of chocolate made in its Beijing factory after it was found to contain melamine, the industrial chemical that has sickened tens of thousands of Chinese children.
The 11 recalled items were sold in parts of Asia and the Pacific, the company said in a statement. Cadbury's chocolates sold in the United States were not affected, said a spokesman for Hershey's, Cadbury's sole U.S. distributor.
Meanwhile, Kraft Foods, the maker of Oreo cookies, and Mars, the maker of M&Ms and Snickers candy, questioned the findings of Indonesian tests that identified melamine in samples of their products made in China.
Both Kraft Foods and Mars said they would comply with an Indonesian recall but planned to conduct their own tests and look into the possibility the tainted products were counterfeits.
Melamine-laced baby formula and other dairy products in China have been blamed for sickening nearly 54,000 children and leading to four infant deaths. The industrial chemical, which is high in nitrogen, is believed to have been added to watered-down milk to mask the resulting protein deficiency and fool quality tests.
Preliminary tests showed melamine in Cadbury chocolates produced at the candy maker's Beijing factory, but it was too early to say how much of the chemical was in them, said a Cadbury spokesman who declined to be identified because of company policy.
Another official reached through the company's London office said there was no way the contaminated chocolate could find its way into other countries because the Chinese factory only supplies Australia, Taiwan, Nauru, Hong Kong and Christmas Island.
"That factory in Beijing only exports to those markets. It's only a small factory," said the official. He said Chinese production makes up only 0.5 percent of Cadbury's global sales, and the recalled items are "less than that because it's only chocolate."
The recalled products included Cadbury Dark Chocette, Cadbury Eclairs, Cadbury Dairy Milk Chocolate, Cadbury Dairy Milk Hazelnut Chocolate, Cadbury Dairy Milk Cookies Chocolate and Cadbury Hazelnut Praline Chocolate.
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From WebMD
Cadbury's Chocolate Safe in U.S.
Cadbury's Chocolate Recall Limited to Asia, Australia; Company Notes Melamine Risk
By Miranda Hitti
WebMD Health News
Sept. 29, 2008 -- The chocolate company Cadbury is temporarily taking certain chocolate products off the market -- but only in Asia and Australia.
In a news release, Cadbury calls the move a "precautionary step" because some Chinese dairy products are tainted with melamine, a chemical that artificially makes milk appear to have more protein.
Melamine can cause kidney diseases. In China, three babies have died and more than 54,000 have sought medical treatment related to melamine-tainted dairy products, according to the World Health Organization.
The FDA is following China's melamine problem. As of Sept. 25, FDA testing of milk-based products imported into the U.S. from China hadn't turned up any melamine contamination. The FDA warns against using Chinese-made infant formulas, which aren't approved for sale in the U.S.
Cadbury Chocolate
Cadbury is withdrawing a range of its chocolate products and Choclairs -- all made at Cadbury's Beijing plant -- from the market in China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Australia.
Cadbury products made at that plant are only exported to Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Australia.
Cadbury Eclairs are also temporarily coming off the market in Australia because they were made in Beijing. Cadbury states that a "small amount" of that product had also been exported to Christmas Island (an Australian territory in the Indian Ocean), and the South Pacific island nation of Nauru.
"No other products and countries are affected and consumers in all other countries can continue to enjoy our products with confidence," states Cadbury, adding that "Chinese dairy products are not used in any other Cadbury products we manufacture outside China."
Cadbury plans to get those products back on the market in Asia and Australia as soon as possible.
Although Cadbury products sold in the U.S. are safe to eat, another sweet -- White Rabbit Candy -- is being recalled because it might be tainted with melamine.
QFCO Inc. of Burlingame, Calif., is recalling White Rabbit Candy, which was distributed in California, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Minnesota, New York, Oregon, Texas, and Washington state. All packages have a logo of a white rabbit on the front with the words "White Rabbit." No illnesses have been linked to White Rabbit Candy.
You can return White Rabbit Candy to the place of purchase for a full refund. For more information on the White Rabbit Candy recall, call QFCO at 650-697-6633.
Last week, the FDA also warned consumers to avoid seven Mr. Brown instant coffee and milk tea products made by the Taiwanese company King Car Food Industrial Co. Ltd because the nondairy creamer used to make those products may contain melamine. Those 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)
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From FoxNews
Cadbury: Melamine Found in Chinese-Made Chocolates
HONG KONG — British candy maker Cadbury said Monday it is recalling 11 types of Chinese-made chocolates after tests found they contained the industrial chemical melamine.
A Cadbury spokesman said it was too early to say how much of the chemical was in the chocolates.
"These are preliminary findings from tests. And it's too early to say where the source was or the extent of it," the spokesman told The Associated Press in a telephone interview.
He declined to be named because of company policy.
Cadbury said in a statement it has recalled 11 chocolate products made at its factory in Beijing which are distributed in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Australia.
The company said, however, that all its dairy suppliers have been cleared by government milk testing.
China's recent food safety scandal started with the discovery of melamine, which is used to make plastics, in baby milk powder.
Four infants have died and some 54,000 have developed kidney stones or other illnesses after drinking the contaminated baby formula.
Authorities say suppliers might have added melamine, which is rich in nitrogen, to watered-down milk to deceive quality tests for protein.
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2 comments:
There issues about milk products coming from china that has melamine in it has spread worldwide. Not only in Malaysia but people around the world are scared that their foods are also contaminated with melamine. Even Philippines have started to pull milk products in groceries that are suspected of high melamine content . Here's 52 Milk Products that could be banned due to high Melamine Content in the Philippines.
I know from China newspaper that the melamine ingredient is contaiminated to the Cadbury chocolates by the upstream suppliers, sure not by the Cadbury itself. The supplier may purchase the contaminated milk powders from Sanlu or somewhere.
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