(Compiled from reports)—U.S. Infant Formula contaminated with melamine. Melamine, an industrial waste product and contaminant in many food products imported from China, has been a huge source of concern since pet food was found to be contaminated with the chemical in 2007, causing the untimely death of possibly thousands of pets. Since then, American consumers have been pressuring the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to set a safety standard for the amount of melamine that could be in a product and still be considered safe. After the Chinese melamine-contaminated infant formula disaster became known worldwide, the FDA began secretly testing infant formulas in the U.S. in September 2008.

On October 3, the following statement was released: "FDA is currently unable to establish any level of melamine and melamine-related compounds in infant formula that does not raise public health concerns."

On November 28, the FDA set a threshold of 1 part per million (1 mg. per kg.) of melamine in formula, provided a related chemical isn’t present, after finding the most popular brands of infant formulas in the U.S. contaminated with melamine. Canada and China have the same melamine "safety" threshold that is 20 times higher than Taiwan’s safety standard.

What infant formulas are contaminated? Nestle’s Good Start Supreme Infant Formula with Iron had 2 positive tests for melamine on one sample; Mead Johnson’s Infant Formula Powder, Enfamil LIPIL with Iron, had 3 positive tests on one sample for cyanuric acid, a related chemical. Abbott Laboratories revealed that in-house tests had detected trace levels of melamine in its infant formula.

Those three formula makers manufacture more than 90 percent of all infant formula produced in the United States. To date, no infant formula in the U.S. has been recalled, or any other melamine-contaminated products destined for human consumption.

Three-hundred tons of soy meal imported from China contaminated with melamine. Ironically, the same day the FDA set the threshold for melamine in infant formula at 1 part per million, French authorities were busy recalling soy meal destined to be fed to organic poultry in France.