8 Oct 2008

Melamine found in milk drink imported from China

6:34 pm on 8 October 2008

New Zealand's Food Safety Authority has found a small amount of melamine in a milk-based drink imported from China.

The authority has updated its table of foods for melamine presence and says most of the products tested in New Zealand continue to show no presence of the industrial chemical.

However, it found the Chinese-imported Wahaha AD milk drink in 100ml bottles has 3.3 parts per million of melamine.

The authority says the level of melamine is low and unlikely to pose any health risk to those who have drunk it.

It says most products likely to pose a significant risk have been identified.

In September it was revealed that the industrial chemical, normally used to make plastic, was found in Chinese milk products to boost protein levels.

Four children in China have died and 53,000 have been made ill after drinking contaminated milk powder. Twenty-two companies have been implicated, including Sanlu Group, which is 43% owned by New Zealand dairy giant Fonterra.

Countries around the world have now banned or restricted milk products from China and the government has announced a series of measures to try to contain the scandal.