South Korea Finds Harmful Chemicals in 10 Chinese Food Products

Text of report in English by South Korean news agency Yonhap

Seoul, Oct. 6 (Yonhap) – South Korean health authorities said Monday that they have found traces of harmful chemicals in 10 Chinese food products that can cause kidney problems in humans during a nationwide inspection.

The Korea Food and Drug Administration (KFDA) said in a news briefing that while sales will be allowed for 212 products that have passed inspections, bans will be maintained on 216 that could not be checked because they were imported in too small quantities or are suspected of containing traces of melamine.

The health authority began testing imported foods on Sept. 19, after concerns were raised that tainted dairy-based products may have been used in confectionery imported from China.

It said 10 food products, including those sold by Haitai Confectionery and Food Co., Lotte Confectionery Co., Nestle SA and Mars Inc. were tainted with melamine, along with the milk-based ingredient lactoferrin, which is imported from New Zealand.

Melamine is a nitrogen-based chemical that can pose serious health risks if taken in large quantities. It is used widely in kitchen utensils, but if added to dairy-based food items the nitrogen can artificially increase protein levels, translating into higher dairy prices.

Chinese health officials have said the use of melamine in dairy products has killed at least four infants and left 54,000 others ailing from kidney stones or other illnesses.

The KFDA said of the 216 products, no tests have been carried out on 26 items since they could not be traced and brought back to the laboratories for testing.

Health and Welfare Minister Jeon Jae-hee said earlier in the day in reference to the melamine scare that the government was at fault for not acting more quickly on public concerns that food and ingredients imported from China may have been contaminated with melamine.

"The KFDA should have started checking products on Sept. 11 when the first reports of melamine appeared instead of waiting for confirmation from Chinese authorities that came six days later," she told lawmakers at a parliamentary audit.

The minister then said that Seoul regrets not ordering an immediate sales ban on all suspected goods to prevent people from inadvertently buying products that may have been contaminated with the industrial chemical.

Originally published by Yonhap news agency, Seoul, in English 0641 6 Oct 08.

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