New Haven Independent

Bags of “White Rabbit Creamy Candy” were pulled from two New Haven grocery stores this week by food safety inspectors from the state Department of Consumer Protection.

The candies, imported from China and distributed by Queensway Food Inc of California, contain the toxic chemical melamine.

State inspectors pulled them off the shelves of the four Connecticut stores earlier this week: The Hong Kong Grocery at 71 Whitney Ave, New Haven, the State Street Fish Market at 892 State St., New Haven, the Asian Store at 20 Foxon Blvd. in East Haven, and A Dong Market in West Hartford.

Melamine has been found in baby formula and other Chinese products containing milk protein. It was the target of a significant recall of pet food last year. It is blamed for the death of four babies, and for poisoning 54,000 children. It has no approved use in human or animal food in the United States.

Frank Green, director of the Food and Standards Division of the state DCP, said his inspectors came to find the toxic candy while searching for baby formula.

“We had an assignment from FDA to look for [contaminated] baby formula,” said Green. Inspectors poked through 90 Asian grocery stores in the state and came back empty-handed. When they got back, they heard about a Sept. 26 recall on the White Rabbit candies. Connecticut was not one of the nine states named in the recall, but one of the inspectors recalled spotting the candy on a shelf during his rounds.

“I saw this down at one of the markets,” the inspector told Green. “We knew that it was here,” Green said. He told his inspectors to go back and search for the rabbits at the state’s Asian grocery stores.

So far, tainted candy has been found in four stores. The state is continuing inspections throughout the state, Green said.

At the Hong Kong Grocery Store, the candy was nowhere to be found Thursday.

“We threw it out,” said a clerk. She said she was too busy to answer any more questions.