Melamine found in more US infant formula

More US infant formula was found to contain melamine and its byproduct cyanuric acid, according to the US Food & Drug Administration (FDA).

The FDA detected the chemicals in four of 89 containers of infant formula made in the US. Updated results also show that two additional containers of Mead Johnson's Enfamil LIPIL with Iron had traces of cyanuric acid.

This is the second time the industrial chemical was found in the US, but the FDA insisted that US supplies are safe and that ingredients are not imported from China.

The FDA said last month that the toxicity of cyanuric acid is under study, but in the meantime it is assumed that its potency is equal to that of melamine.

An FDA official said in November that the melamine contamination may have resulted from contact with the chemical during processing and packaging.

In November 2008, the FDA found trace amounts of melamine in Nestle's infant formula. The product had test readings of 0.137 and 0.14 parts per million (ppm).

Mead Johnson's Infant Formula Powder, Enfamil LIPIL with Iron, had three positive tests for cyanuric acid at an average of 0.247 ppm.

In the same month, Abbott Laboratories also found trace levels of melamine in its infant formula through in-house tests. A company spokesman said the levels detected were lower than what FDA found in the other formulas.

Melamine can cause kidney stones and acute renal failure if ingested in large amounts. In China, melamine-tainted formula killed six infants and sickened thousands of children. The chemical was added to milk powder by manufacturers to make watered-down baby formula to appear far more nutritious than it really was.