What the heck is "Melamine" & why is it in my...?

Melamine is an organic compound that is often combined with formaldehyde to produce melamine resin, a synthetic polymer which is fire resistant and heat tolerant. Melamine resin is a very versatile material with a highly stable structure. Uses for melamine include whiteboards, floor tiles, kitchenware, fire retardant fabrics, and commercial filters. Melamine can be easily molded while warm, but will set into a fixed form. This property makes it ideally suited to certain industrial applications. Aside from common commercial uses, melamine became a topic of much discussion in early 2007, when veterinary scientists determined it to be the cause of hundreds of pet deaths, because of pet food contamination. Prior to these reports, melamine had been regarded as non-toxic or minimally toxic. However, because of the unexplained presence of melamine in wheat gluten added to mass-produced dog and cat foods, it is the most likely cause. Pet owners report symptoms that are commonly associated with renal failure, which could be explained by the ammonia that may result from the digestion of the melamine. http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-melamine.htm

melamine when mixed with formaldehyde creates a plastic that is used to make counter tops, dry erase boards, fabrics, glues, housewares and flame retardants. Melamine is one of the major components in Pigment Yellow 150, a colorant in inks and plastics. melamine was at the heart of the pet food recall here in The U.S. last year. no.....i'm not really this smart, i got all this info from Wikipedia. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melamine

I just looked it up - ack! Here are some excerpts of what I found: [i]Melamine is an organic base and a trimer of cyanamide, with a 1,3,5-triazine skeleton. Like cyanamide, it contains 66% nitrogen by mass and, if mixed with resins, has fire retardant properties due to its release of nitrogen gas when burned or charred, and has several other industrial uses. Melamine combines with cyanuric acid to form melamine cyanurate, which has been implicated in the Chinese protein export contaminations. Melamine is also a metabolite of cyromazine, a pesticide. It is formed in the body of mammals who have ingested cyromazine.[2] It has been reported that cyromazine can also be converted to melamine in plants.[3][4] Melamine is used combined with formaldehyde to produce melamine resin, a very durable thermosetting plastic, and melamine foam, a polymeric cleaning product. The end products include countertops, dry erase boards, fabrics, glues, housewares and flame retardants. Melamine is one of the major components in Pigment Yellow 150, a colorant in inks and plastics. Melamine by itself is nontoxic in low doses, but when combined with cyanuric acid it can cause fatal kidney stones due to the formation of an insoluble melamine cyanurate.[14] Melamine is described as being "Harmful if swallowed, inhaled or absorbed through the skin. Chronic exposure may cause cancer or reproductive damage. Eye, skin and respiratory irritant.” However, the toxic dose is on a par with common table salt with an LD50 of more than 3 grams per kilogram of bodyweight.[15] In September 2008, several companies were implicated in a scandal involving milk and infant formula which had been adulterated with melamine. By 22 September, nearly 53,000 illnesses, over 12,800 hospitalisations, and four infant deaths had been reported, caused by kidney stones and other renal failure.[38][39] [/i] This is copied from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melamine I love Cadbury chocolate, but I don't think I want to be eating plastic.

Its actually a substaice which is used to make plastic. A fantastic site for recalls is : totalrecall.com they have everything. You should check it out asap. I hope that every one here does. I heard on the local news they added water to the milk to volumize is them added this substance to make it look more think. All this makes me want to buy a place in the country. Grow my own food. Have chickens for eggs and a cow or goat for milk.

Indeed China is having an issue with their products, due to its melamine content. I haven't heard that chocolates were already contaminated by it, until I saw this post. One of the worst cases they are facing now is about melamine being a content for children's milk. Lots of children were affected due to this thing, not just in their country but worldwide, since they export products. I hope next time they would be more careful with the substances they are mixing with their products...

Melamine is an organic compound that is often combined with formaldehyde to produce melamine resin, a synthetic polymer which is fire resistant and heat tolerant. Melamine resin is a very versatile material with a highly stable structure. Uses for melamine include whiteboards, floor tiles, kitchenware, fire retardant fabrics, and commercial filters. Melamine can be easily molded while warm, but will set into a fixed form. This property makes it ideally suited to certain industrial applications. Wow, I don't think I will be buying Cadbury products from now on. Why WOULD melamine be found in chocolate, or anything else you eat, for that matter?

I have no clue what it is. I have heard of it before though. I am not sure why it is in the Cadbury chocolate either. It looks like it needs to be removed though.

I thought melamine suppose to be plates and cutlery but now they have put it in food. It is so dangerous to eat food made from china. I used to eat those candies with a rabbit brand also made in china and now it has been banned here in my country. My country has been a dumping ground for china made goods. Beware of products from this country, we might end up 6 feet underground.

Hi koaalatbs, All I know about melamine is that it is an industrial chemical, and that traces of it has been found in some chocolate made in China. I think that the food agencies in all countries have to be on the alert for things like this, and manufactures everywhere have to make sure that plants are up to standard. Blessings.

Hi koala melamine is a substance that is put on china cups etc..in the kitchen you can have melamine sides or cupboards...but how on earth it got into cadbury's chocolate is beyond me! littleowl

I think the Government of China need to look more inside this Melamine situations. I don't think that this has happen just like this at the time when persons are looking toward them to be the next powerhouse (Yes I believe it is sabotage). It is said that it has been found in baby food and now Cadbury chocolate. We need to pay more attention in what we are eating. Alot of us just go and buy and do not read the instructions neither the ingredients. This product is harmful and need to look into.

I was baffled when I read that, too. I thought melamine was that cheap stuff they make unbreakable crockery out of - it doesn't go in the microwave, either! Maybe the same chemical they use in the crockery has gotten into the chocolate. Scary, isn't it? We don't know what we're eating these days and I think governments should put a ban on a lot of these things. Chemicals and additives might make our food last longer, but I also think they are causing things like ADHD in children. We didn't seem to have all these kids jumping the walls 40 years ago - so what's going down?

Hi koalatbs, I think its disgusting what they are putting into food, I wouldn't buy anything that is made in China. I think "Melamine" is a plastice fibres that has been found in babies food in China a few weeks ago, but I'm not too sure of it. Tamara

AACCkk! I saw that running on the ticker on one of the news channels I didn't see or hear the whole story but what I am reading here its VERY FRIGHTNING I love Cadbury too, and I do buy the other chocolate bars they carry year around. Geez! its been awhile since I bought any of them but I do on occasion. didn't know they came from CHINA EITHER... Man nothing we do/eat/breathe is safe anymore isn't there another problem with a pet food product or did I dream that up?? I can't keep up with the messes in the world I swear I can't;

It is a chemical found in Chinese milk and milk products. Consumed in large quantities it causes kidney stones and other metabolic problems. All those people who are involved in tainting process did not spare little babies. It is one bad thing one has ever heard of. So I am extra cautious of all products now and avoiding "Made in China" products.

Melamine is used to bulk up the nitrogen content of milk which misleads testing processes. Testing for milk protein and fat content is important, because the higher the content - the higher the price. Unfortunately This summary provides a high level report on the production of milk powder in China, particularly bulk packaged milk powder used in Chocolates, Baked products, whey, yogurt, Icecream etc. Food processors buy bulk, and in most cases are very price sensitive. Chinese powder milk exports have been growing - see link below and Chinese milk has a good chance of finding its way into our food. China exports the CHEAPEST milk. http://www.bharatbook.com/detail.asp?id=72241 Unless there are specific disclaimers, I would view all processed food products with suspicion. http://www.bharatbook.com/detail.asp?id=72241

I have no clue what that is. It sure doesn't sound very good though. And why it would be in chocolate, I have couldn't even begin to guess. It really makes me want to be extra careful about what kinds of food I eat.

i'm not for sure but when i saw the word melamine i thought of those plastic dishes they use to make. don't know if that's the same thing or not.

I used to own a set of Melamine dishes. The were a hard plastic. Here is what one website says about melamine. "Melamine is an organic compound that is often combined with formaldehyde to produce melamine resin, a synthetic polymer which is fire resistant and heat tolerant. Melamine resin is a very versatile material with a highly stable structure. Uses for melamine include whiteboards, floor tiles, kitchenware, fire retardant fabrics, and commercial filters. Melamine can be easily molded while warm, but will set into a fixed form. This property makes it ideally suited to certain industrial applications. Melamine resin is manufactured by mixing urea with formaldehyde under heat and pressure. The substances begin to polymerize and are forced into a mold which will create the desired shape. Under pressure, melamine releases water, which could make the plastic unstable if it is not removed. The materials finish polymerizing and create a finished product, melamine resin. Melamine resin is known as a thermoset plastic, because the plastic is fixed after molding. If exposed to enough heat, melamine will melt. For this reason, melamine dishware should not be exposed to high temperatures like those in the oven and microwave. However, the plastic is able to withstand higher temperatures than other plastics. Because it is a thermoset plastic, melamine resin is difficult to recycle." http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-melamine.htm A component of melamine - formaldehyde - a chemical which is toxic and known to cause cancer and other types of health problems. I wouldn't want any of this stuff in my body. My brother just sent me a link that talks about the candy having melamine in it and to avoid such things coming from China. I'm to the point I want to avoid anything coming from China!

Some chocolates combined with milk containing melamine is already mixed with melamine. So I better take precautions on eating chocolates and if I'm at the stor to buy chocolates, I'll check its ingredients before buying if it contains some artificial sweetener and of course, to look out for "melamine" :)