Govt to destroy contaminated Chinese milk products

The Jakarta Post , Jakarta Tue, 10/28/2008 1:35 AM National
Health Minister Siti Fadilah Supari said Monday that the authorities had confiscated a total of over 478,000 packs of melamine-contaminated milk and milk products imported form China, and they would destroy all of them.
However, the minister said that the government would not publicize it "for reasons that I could not tell. But I assure you that they will all be destroyed."
Early in September melamine-contaminated milk formula was found in China, that had sickened thousands of babies and killed some of them.
In a belated response, the Indonesian government recalled all Chinese milk products from the markets and prohibited their importation and distribution.
The Food and Drug Supervisory Agency (BPOM) then raided markets and confiscated products found to be contaminated with melamine.
The products found being distributed in the local markets included Guozhen (full cream milk powder), two kinds of Oreo Stick Wafer, two kinds of M&M's candies, Snickers biscuits, blue-packed White Rabbit candies, red-packed White Rabbit, Soybean Drink With Milk (yellow packs), Soyspring Instant Milk Cereal and Soyspring Instant Peanut Milk.
Meanwhile, BPOM said Monday it would continue to withdraw Snickers biscuits and M&M's chocolate candies despite latest tests showing low melamine contents.
BPOM chief Husniah Rubiana Thamrin acknowledged that results of repeat tests proved that both products contained low melamine contents, but the agency would continue with the withdrawal.
"Indeed there have been re-checks and the results show that the melamine content is low. But according to our standard operating procedures if a brand is already declared to contain melamine it has to be withdrawn and destroyed," Husniah Rubiana Thamrin was quoted by Antara as saying on Monday.
She said the policy was taken to assure consumers that all food products sold in the country are safe to consume.
"This will also be good for the companies concerned because it would convince the people that their products are safe to eat," she added.
The producer of Snickers and M&M's, PT Mars Symbioscience Indonesia, has said that all of its products are safe to eat.
The company's president Noel Janetski said in a statement that his side and BPOM had conducted a re-test on the products, and the results showed that the content of melamine in M&M's was below the tolerated limit, and Snickers did not contain any melamine. (rid)