Melamine Scare Rocks Korea Again

A melamine scare is gripping Korea again, as food additives used for children’s snacks were found contaminated with the hazardous chemical.

The Korea Food and Drug Administration said 12 food products were found to have been laced with melamine, including Orion Confectionary’s “Dr. You Golden Kids,” Donga Pharmaceutical’s “MiniMax Multivitamin and Mineral,” and Haitai Beverage’s “Fruit Village C-A Grapes.”

When Orion launched in November last year its “Dr. You Golden Kids” line-up, the company said its products contain no ingredients causing allergic reactions. The company said it immediately stopped the delivery of the products after receiving the notice from the food watchdog.

Haitai said it is conducting its own inspections and Donga said it stopped production of its multivitamin.

These companies, however, said they will not take the products in question off shelves unless comprehensive test results show not only raw ingredients but also the finished products contain the chemical.

An Orion source said, “We use a tiny amount of ferric pyrophosphate so melamine is unlikely to be found in the finished products. A recall decision will be made after the tests results come out.”

The lukewarm response from the food industry is fueling consumer anger, however. One consumer at Lotte Mart said, “It makes no sense that the product made of a melamine-tainted material doesn’t contain the chemical. The food companies should be harshly punished to guarantee food security.”

takeoff@donga.com wiseweb@donga.com