A popular jelly candy imported from Taiwan was pulled from the shelves of hundreds of supermarkets after it was blamed for the choking deaths of two children.
Grocery giant Safeway pulled Jelly Yum brand candies from 200 of its northern California stores last week. On Wednesday, the Albertson's chain announced that Fruit Poppers and Gel-ly Drop candies will be removed from its 2,500 stores nationwide, and bulk-goods store Costco ordered the candies off the shelves of more than 250 stores around the world, including 10 in Asia.
"We've taken them out of stores and locked them up," Stacia Levenfeld, a spokeswoman for Albertson's, told the San Jose Mercury News.
The candy is linked to the deaths of a 3-year-old in November and a 12-year-old last month. In both cases, rescue workers said they couldn't dislodge the sticky gel from the children's throats.
The gel candies are individually packed in small, soft plastic cups and are sold in bulk in plastic jars. The brightly colored candies have become popular over the last two years among American children after the treats met with success in Asia.
Health officials have warned the sweet gel does not readily dissolve in the mouth. Some jars carry a label warning that the candies are not safe for children under age 6, others age 3.
Around the world, more than a dozen deaths are tied to the candy. Most are in Asia, where the candy originated in 1995. In Japan, the candy has gotten the nickname "deadly mouthful."
Taichung County-based Sheng Hsiang Jen Foods Co (華元盛香珍集團), the manufacturer of the gel candies blamed for the two deaths in the Bay Area, maintains the candy is safe. "Whether it was a mini-fruity gel, a piece of meat, a hot dog, or any hard candy, the result could have been the same," a company statement said.
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