Five schoolchildren have died and 25 hospitalized in eastern India after drinking milk that may have been contaminated, an official said Friday.
Five schoolchildren have died and 25 hospitalized in eastern India after drinking milk that may have been contaminated, an official said Friday.
India has a federal law to guard against food contamination, but states are required to enforce it, said Dhir Singh, a senior official with the Prevention of Food Adulteration Division of the federal Directorate General of Health Services.
There have been several dairy product scares across Asia in recent months, including one in China when more than 53,000 infants became sick after consuming infant formula containing melamine. Nearly 13,000 were hospitalized and at least four died of illnesses.
As a precaution, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration began to block imports of Chinese milk earlier this week in an effort to ensure that products contaminated with melamine do not enter the U.S. market.
It is not known if the incident in eastern India is to related to events in China.
The FDA listed dozens of products, including cereals, snack foods, cheese, ice cream, carbonated drinks, candy, puddings and pet foods as potentially contaminated with melamine, which is used in the manufacture of plastics and fertilizer.
The agency said that water is added to milk to increase its volume, and melamine is added to the mixture to boost its nitrogen content so that it appears to contain more protein
source
cnn.com
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