EU bans imports of baby food with Chinese milk

BEIJING (AP) — The European Union banned imports of baby food containing Chinese milk Thursday as a toxic chemical that was illegally added to China’s dairy supplies turned up in candy and other Chinese-made goods that were quickly pulled from stores worldwide.

The 27-nation EU adds to the growing list of countries that have banned or recalled Chinese dairy products because of the contamination, which has killed four Chinese babies and sickened 54,000. In addition to the ban, the European Commission called for more checks on other Chinese food imports.

Outside Shanghai, three zoo babies were found to have developed kidney stones after being nursed with tainted milk powder for more than a year. A lion cub and two baby orangutans were sickened after drinking infant formula made by the Sanlu Group Co., said Zhang Xu, a veterinarian with the Hangzhou Zhangxu Animal Hospital.

Sanlu is at the center of the tainted milk crisis.

Chinese baby formula contaminated with melamine has been blamed for the deaths and illnesses in China. Health experts say ingesting a small amount of the chemical poses no danger, but melamine — used to make plastics and fertilizer — can cause kidney stones and lead to kidney failure. Infants are particularly vulnerable.

In the southern Chinese territory of Macau, authorities found melamine in samples of a popular chocolate-filled koala-shaped cookie made by Lotte China Foods Co. Tests found melamine in the cookies were at levels 24 times the safety limit, the Macau government reported. The company is a member of Tokyo-based conglomerate Lotte Group.

All European Union imports of products containing more than 15 percent milk powder will have to be tested under the new rules due to come into force today.

Food safety experts in the EU, which imports about 21,500 tons of Chinese confectionary products, said there is only a limited risk in Europe from the food imports. But the European Commission says it is acting as a precaution in the face of the growing health scare.