A nonthreatening amount of melamine has been found in a milkshake at a Chinese restaurant in southern Austria, the Health Ministry said Thursday.
Melamine-contaminated milk has killed four babies and sickened more than 50,000 children in mainland China _ prompting tests on Chinese products around the world.
Austrian authorities inspecting random samples found a small amount of the substance in a milkshake at a restaurant in Graz.
The milkshake had not been sold to a customers, and no one was sickened by it, the ministry said. It came from a Chinese store in Vienna and is off the market.
In two weeks Austrian authorities have tested 184 Chinese food products, with 107 tests coming back negative for melamine. Only the milkshake has tested positive so far; other results are still outstanding.
Health experts say ingesting a small amount of melamine poses no danger, but in larger doses, the chemical _ used to make plastics and fertilizer _ can cause kidney stones and lead to kidney failure. Infants are particularly vulnerable.
Melamine-tainted products have turned up in an increasing number of Chinese-made exports abroad _ from candies to yogurt to rice balls.
The European Union last week banned imports of baby food containing Chinese milk. The move by the 27-nation EU adds to the growing list of countries that have banned or recalled Chinese dairy products because of the contamination.
