18 Oct 2008

Melamine may be in products in New Zealand

12:11 pm on 18 October 2008

A cake product and a milk drink found to contain the potentially deadly chemical melamine in Australia may also be in New Zealand.

Tainted Dali Yuan brand First Milk Vanilla Drink and Orion brand Tiramisu Cake with Cheese Cream were discovered in Victoria.

The level of melamine in each product was about twice the acceptable level.

The chemical has been blamed for killing four babies and leaving thousands of others sick in China.

But the Food Safety Authority's deputy chief executive, Sandra Daly, says people would have to consume a lot of the food and drink to become ill.

"I think if anyone has eaten those products they don't need to have any concerns about their health unless they were eating an incredible amount," she said.

Ms Daly said the imported products have been stopped and checked at the border since last month, but may still be found stored or frozen somewhere.