The latest food scare and it's not from China!

Dec 5 2007

According to health officials in the U.S. a candy imported from Mexico has been found to contain high levels of lead.

The Mexican syrup candy sold as "Barrilito" was imported by Villa-Mex Imports in San Antonio and looks like dark brown syrup shaped into little barrels.

The product has bright yellow labels with red lettering and is sold in retail stores throughout Texas; "Productos Avila, S.A. de C.V. Puerto Malaque 1379 Col. Sta. Maria Guadalajara, Jal. Mexico" also appears on the labels.

Lead can be very dangerous if ingested in higher than recommended levels and prolonged lead exposure, particularly in children, can cause delayed mental and physical development.

The company is advising consumers who have purchased the candy to discard it immediately.

Officials at the Texas Department of Health, say routine laboratory tests on the candy have revealed lead levels in excess of the recommended 0.1 parts per million allowed by the Food and Drug Administration, hence the recall.

The health officials say the problem is with the product, rather than the distributor, and have received no reports of people becoming sick from eating the contaminated candy.

Experts say although not all children with lead poisoning will have symptoms, symptoms such as a lack of appetite, attention difficulty, headaches, vomiting, weakness and insomnia are all typical of lead poisoning.