A sample of creamy candy and a sample of cake were found tainted with melamine in Hong Kong, the Center for Food Safety (CFS) of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government announced Tuesday.
The center said in a statement that the substance was found in mainland brand White Rabbit candies, and local Four Seas brand of strawberry flavored cake.
Under the Harmful Substances in Food (Amendment) Regulation 2008 which takes effect in Hong Kong Tuesday, the legal limit for melamine in the above two food items is 2.5 ppm. However, the melamine found in the candy and the cake was 4.6 ppm and 6.1 ppm, respectively.
"We have informed the trade of the test results and asked them to stop selling the products concerned," a CFS spokesman said.
No prosecution under the Regulation will be taken as the samples were collected before the commencement of the amendment regulation, he said.
"However, we have sent warning letters to the retailers and importers concerned. The importers will recall the affected products," he added.
(Xinhua News Agency September 24, 2008)