Snickers And Other Chocolate From China?

[lifeisrandom]

is it safe to eat or not? i mean, its on the shelves for crissakes.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20081004/hl_nm/...melamine_snacks

funny thing is that i am a snickers addict and i just noticed these larger snickers bar showing up on the thai shelf.

they are bigger than the usual snickers bar sold here and only slighly more expensive 26 baht instead of 22 baht if i remember correctly.

and of course they are from china...

so did they send the melamine ones here?

Edited October 17, 2008 by lifeisrandom

[Gumballl]

is it safe to eat or not? i mean, its on the shelves for crissakes.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20081004/hl_nm/...melamine_snacks

funny thing is that i am a snickers addict and i just noticed these larger snickers bar showing up on the thai shelf.

they are bigger than the usual snickers bar sold here and only slighly more expensive 26 baht instead of 22 baht if i remember correctly.

and of course they are from china...

so did they send the melamine ones here?

It's been a year or so since I ate a snickers bar in Thailand. I could have swore that they came from Malaysia, or was it Indonesia?

Either way, next time you consume a snickers bar, take a ride in a cab on the expressway. Then ask yourself which is more dangerous... the candy or the taxi?

[gunnyd]

Better safe than sorry. Read the label. Products from the same company are made in different countries. e.g. M&Ms Plain China, Peanut China, Crispy Australia. Twix Australia, Snickers China, Mars Indonesia, Cadberry China, Oreos Plain in a roll China, in 3 packs Indonesia. I can go on and on. The major food manufacturers use numerous different plants to produce the same products. READ THE LABEL...

Especially if you have children. Also be on the lookout for any Fonterra products. They own a 40+% stake in the Sanlu Corporation that distributed and most likely tainted the milk.

I don't know what it will take to get people to stop buying consumable items from China. Antifreeze in toothpaste and mouthwash, melamine in dog and cat food, and now milk and everything that has milk in it.

[lifeisrandom]

yeah i just told you its made in china.

but its still on the shelves.

the question is, is the FDA checking stuff on the shelves here or not?

[whatsoever]

23 baht for a large one in Watsons cheaper than the UK. However, the Thai Minister responsable doesnt seem too concerned. So not to worry

[Antimony]

Kinda related...

"Mars candy is an irresponsible corporation that is still conducting archaic tests on animals. They own Iambs too. Examples: Mars funded a test in which experimenters forced rabbits to eat a high-cholesterol diet with varying amounts of cocoa, then cut out and examined tissue from the rabbits' primary blood vessel to the heart to determine the effect of cocoa on rabbits' muscle tissue. Mars supported a test in which experimenters attached plastic tubes to arteries in guinea pigs' necks and injected cocoa ingredients into their jugular veins to examine the effect of cocoa ingredients on their blood pressure."

http://www.marscandykills.com/

Edited October 17, 2008 by Antimony

[lifeisrandom]

23 baht for a large one in Watsons cheaper than the UK. However, the Thai Minister responsable doesnt seem too concerned. So not to worry

that is what caught me too, the price. like they want to clean the shelves.

[JetsetBkk]

Scary stuff, melamine: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melamine#Toxicity

[dumball]

Scary stuff, melamine: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melamine#Toxicity

I just read that article , very , very scary indeed , especialy when it helps you realise that melamine is used in a wide range of food items that you could be ingesting which intensifies the amount of overall melamine in your system . I have noted before , here on TV , we have not purchased ANY food stuff with ANY Chinese writing on the packaging for a very long time , this does not of course , eliminate the food stuff from other countries that use Chinese ingrediants in their products or repackage in their own containers . You just cannot put your trust into government agencies when you and YOUR families health is at stake , they do not test often enough , nor do they test at all outlets , you have to be the judge .

[Roadman]

There are good milk products available from China, but the problem is knowing which are the good ones, so don't buy any products that you suspect. Personally I do not buy anything edible from China or known Chinese sources as their quality systems are very poor.

The comment regards Fonterra above is very incorrect. They had one product (being made for them and not by them) with excessive melamine that they immediately removed from the market. Fonterra (from New Zealand) is leading the change in the Chinese milk industry at the source of the problem (the milking shed) with state of the art milking sheds and quality systems and is one of the few who's products can be trusted.

The problem with the Chinese companies is the problem starts right at the farm. The farmer is paid by volume and there is no quality checks on that volume. So the farmer will add water to increase that volume. Hence the watered down milk arrives at the treatment plant and they are faced with how to put body back in that product to compete in the market place. Enter the Melamine.

If its not the Melamine that puts you off, then what should is the whole process from the Chinese companies. A large chunk of the milk comes from two bit farmers with a couple of cows. The system is bloody primitive with no hygiene and no chilling of the product from milking through to delivery to the plant. It is not uncommon for a collector to be tipping a farmers milk into a container on the side of the road as trucks are passing and dust and fumes waifing over the whole process.

Edit for spelling

Edited October 19, 2008 by Roadman

[JetsetBkk]

Was in a mini-mart today - the shelf containing Snickers, M&Ms, etc. had a notice on it in large Thai letters. The g/f said that the notice says that the products don't contain melamine.

Didn't buy any.

[papajohn]

There are good milk products available from China, but the problem is knowing which are the good ones, so don't buy any products that you suspect. Personally I do not buy anything edible from China or known Chinese sources as their quality systems are very poor.

The comment regards Fonterra above is very incorrect. They had one product (being made for them and not by them) with excessive melamine that they immediately removed from the market. Fonterra (from New Zealand) is leading the change in the Chinese milk industry at the source of the problem (the milking shed) with state of the art milking sheds and quality systems and is one of the few who's products can be trusted.

The problem with the Chinese companies is the problem starts right at the farm. The farmer is paid by volume and there is no quality checks on that volume. So the farmer will add water to increase that volume. Hence the watered down milk arrives at the treatment plant and they are faced with how to put body back in that product to compete in the market place. Enter the Melamine.

If its not the Melamine that puts you off, then what should is the whole process from the Chinese companies. A large chunk of the milk comes from two bit farmers with a couple of cows. The system is bloody primitive with no hygiene and no chilling of the product from milking through to delivery to the plant. It is not uncommon for a collector to be tipping a farmers milk into a container on the side of the road as trucks are passing and dust and fumes waifing over the whole process.

Edit for spelling

Nice post, thanks for the insight, you answered a few questions I had in mind. What we take for granted in the west " does not apply" here. Read the lable on food you buy. It is an interesting fact that some posters are fast to "slander" a companies name without backup information based on fact. Otherwise it is in the relm of fantasy or an agent of the competition. Be careful out there

[bkkjames]

There are good milk products available from China, but the problem is knowing which are the good ones, so don't buy any products that you suspect. Personally I do not buy anything edible from China or known Chinese sources as their quality systems are very poor.

The comment regards Fonterra above is very incorrect. They had one product (being made for them and not by them) with excessive melamine that they immediately removed from the market. Fonterra (from New Zealand) is leading the change in the Chinese milk industry at the source of the problem (the milking shed) with state of the art milking sheds and quality systems and is one of the few who's products can be trusted.

The problem with the Chinese companies is the problem starts right at the farm. The farmer is paid by volume and there is no quality checks on that volume. So the farmer will add water to increase that volume. Hence the watered down milk arrives at the treatment plant and they are faced with how to put body back in that product to compete in the market place. Enter the Melamine.

If its not the Melamine that puts you off, then what should is the whole process from the Chinese companies. A large chunk of the milk comes from two bit farmers with a couple of cows. The system is bloody primitive with no hygiene and no chilling of the product from milking through to delivery to the plant. It is not uncommon for a collector to be tipping a farmers milk into a container on the side of the road as trucks are passing and dust and fumes waifing over the whole process.

Edit for spelling

Nice post, thanks for the insight, you answered a few questions I had in mind. What we take for granted in the west " does not apply" here. Read the lable on food you buy. It is an interesting fact that some posters are fast to "slander" a companies name without backup information based on fact. Otherwise it is in the relm of fantasy or an agent of the competition. Be careful out there

If my memory serves me correct, when this whole issue raised it's ugly head a few weeks ago, there was something covered in the news about Chinese made snickers and mm's that were temporarily pulled off the shelves and tested and found to be 'ok'.

Now that I just bought and ate one the other day, is it too late to regurge it?

[kmart]

There are good milk products available from China, but the problem is knowing which are the good ones, so don't buy any products that you suspect. Personally I do not buy anything edible from China or known Chinese sources as their quality systems are very poor.

The comment regards Fonterra above is very incorrect. They had one product (being made for them and not by them) with excessive melamine that they immediately removed from the market. Fonterra (from New Zealand) is leading the change in the Chinese milk industry at the source of the problem (the milking shed) with state of the art milking sheds and quality systems and is one of the few who's products can be trusted.

The problem with the Chinese companies is the problem starts right at the farm. The farmer is paid by volume and there is no quality checks on that volume. So the farmer will add water to increase that volume. Hence the watered down milk arrives at the treatment plant and they are faced with how to put body back in that product to compete in the market place. Enter the Melamine.

If its not the Melamine that puts you off, then what should is the whole process from the Chinese companies. A large chunk of the milk comes from two bit farmers with a couple of cows. The system is bloody primitive with no hygiene and no chilling of the product from milking through to delivery to the plant. It is not uncommon for a collector to be tipping a farmers milk into a container on the side of the road as trucks are passing and dust and fumes waifing over the whole process.

Edit for spelling

Enlightening post. Thanks.

The Chinese appear desperate to get their product out onto the world market, but lacking the QA/QC measures to ensure much of any sort of safety or quality. This is also true of a lot of piping / plant products I have encountered here in the O&G marketplace. Unbelievable...

[bkkjames]

There are good milk products available from China, but the problem is knowing which are the good ones, so don't buy any products that you suspect. Personally I do not buy anything edible from China or known Chinese sources as their quality systems are very poor.

The comment regards Fonterra above is very incorrect. They had one product (being made for them and not by them) with excessive melamine that they immediately removed from the market. Fonterra (from New Zealand) is leading the change in the Chinese milk industry at the source of the problem (the milking shed) with state of the art milking sheds and quality systems and is one of the few who's products can be trusted.

The problem with the Chinese companies is the problem starts right at the farm. The farmer is paid by volume and there is no quality checks on that volume. So the farmer will add water to increase that volume. Hence the watered down milk arrives at the treatment plant and they are faced with how to put body back in that product to compete in the market place. Enter the Melamine.

If its not the Melamine that puts you off, then what should is the whole process from the Chinese companies. A large chunk of the milk comes from two bit farmers with a couple of cows. The system is bloody primitive with no hygiene and no chilling of the product from milking through to delivery to the plant. It is not uncommon for a collector to be tipping a farmers milk into a container on the side of the road as trucks are passing and dust and fumes waifing over the whole process.

Edit for spelling

Enlightening post. Thanks.

The Chinese appear desperate to get their product out onto the world market, but lacking the QA/QC measures to ensure much of any sort of safety or quality. This is also true of a lot of piping / plant products I have encountered here in the O&G marketplace. Unbelievable...

are you suggesting i should not buy gas for my rental car the next time i am in beijing?

[Scott]

I am giving most anything with milk in it (other than fresh milk) a rest for a time. I won't eat cakes, candies or other things with milk--especially powdered milk in them for a while. So much of this stuff makes it's way around the world. I think they found some milk powder in Europe--which certainly doesn't have a milk shortage--which came from China.

If you can find imported chocolate from the West it might be OK, but for a time, you might want to limit your addiction a little. Maybe cut down to every other day if you think it's safe.

I don't worry about getting poisoned with melamine because I am careful and my consumption level isn't that high, but I don't want to add this substance to the probably hundreds of other toxins I end up ingesting.

If I think any food comes from China, I just don't eat it. They are the least trustworthy nation on earth with regard to food safety. They now have enough money to buy pesticides, herbicides etc., but aren't developed enough to use them responsibly. Probably better off getting it from Myanmar, Cambodia or Laos.

[ukrules]

It appears that you would need to consume quite a bit of this stuff for it to cause any problems in a fully grown adult.

If they didn't put it in baby products I imagine they would have gotten away with it for a lot longer.

[Scott]

For a normal, healthy adult, eating products with this contaminant isn't a problem, however, infants, children and the elderly are more likely to have a problem. This doesn't even include the people who may have kidney problems they aren't aware of.

In the case of melamine contamination, it's just plain not necessary. It's not incidental to production--such as pesticides etc., which are poisonous, but have the purpose of preventing the destruction of a crop. In this case, it's simply poisioning the product for a financial gain. At a minimum it's fraud. We all know that most crops have pesticides applied to them (I don't trust the naturally produced stuff here either), so I wash them carefully and thoroughly.

I think we also have to remember that children eat quite a lot of the contaminated materials. I don't know what the long-term effect of this might be.

[kmart]

There are good milk products available from China, but the problem is knowing which are the good ones, so don't buy any products that you suspect. Personally I do not buy anything edible from China or known Chinese sources as their quality systems are very poor.

The comment regards Fonterra above is very incorrect. They had one product (being made for them and not by them) with excessive melamine that they immediately removed from the market. Fonterra (from New Zealand) is leading the change in the Chinese milk industry at the source of the problem (the milking shed) with state of the art milking sheds and quality systems and is one of the few who's products can be trusted.

The problem with the Chinese companies is the problem starts right at the farm. The farmer is paid by volume and there is no quality checks on that volume. So the farmer will add water to increase that volume. Hence the watered down milk arrives at the treatment plant and they are faced with how to put body back in that product to compete in the market place. Enter the Melamine.

If its not the Melamine that puts you off, then what should is the whole process from the Chinese companies. A large chunk of the milk comes from two bit farmers with a couple of cows. The system is bloody primitive with no hygiene and no chilling of the product from milking through to delivery to the plant. It is not uncommon for a collector to be tipping a farmers milk into a container on the side of the road as trucks are passing and dust and fumes waifing over the whole process.

Edit for spelling

Enlightening post. Thanks.

The Chinese appear desperate to get their product out onto the world market, but lacking the QA/QC measures to ensure much of any sort of safety or quality. This is also true of a lot of piping / plant products I have encountered here in the O&G marketplace. Unbelievable...

are you suggesting i should not buy gas for my rental car the next time i am in beijing?

No, just suggesting you don't ever buy valves or pressure vessels from there. They tend to burst.