Health officials warn about lead levels in Mexican candy

Sweets from Malaysia also could cause medical problems

08:16 PM CDT on Tuesday, August 5, 2008
McClatchy Newspapers

Health officials sent out a warning Tuesday about two types of candy from Mexico and Malaysia that are laced with lead and could cause severe medical problems.

The culprits are: Huevines Confitados Sabor chocolate imported from Mexico and Ego Hao Jin Bang candy imported from Malaysia.

Tests conducted by the California Department of Public Health found levels of lead that could cause health problems, and officials say consumers should simply throw away the candy.

Recent analysis of this candy determined that the Mexican chocolates contained as much as 0.20 parts per million of lead, and the Malaysian candy contained as much as 0.73 ppm of lead. California considers candies with lead levels in excess of 0.10 ppm to be contaminated, according to a statement put out by the health department.

Huevines Confitados Sabor chocolate is manufactured by Confitados Finos Del Bosque in Mexico. It's egg-shaped and has a hard white coating with brown speckles surrounding a chocolate interior.

The candy is approximately one inch long and comes packaged in a clear plastic bag containing 250 pieces. The bag shows a bird sitting inside a broken eggshell on the front of the package. The word "Huevines" is written in large white letters on the front of the package and "confitados sabor chocolate" in brown letters.

Ego Hao Jin Bang, manufactured by Kee Wee Hup Kee Food Manufacture in Malaysia, is a brown-colored candy wrapped in purple-reddish foil with silver ends. Approximately 45 of the foil-wrapped candies are packed into a clear plastic 4.2-ounce bag with the word EGO in pink letters in the top left corner.