Urgent Worldwide Toothpaste Voluntary Recall

In a fresh development on the Chinese toothpaste issue, U.S. Food and Drug Administration's Web site posted a statement today that the company Gilchrist & Soames has voluntarily recalled tubes of Chinese-made toothpaste after tests showed some samples contained diethylene glycol (DEG), a chemical used in anti-freeze.

You may recall that FDA advised consumers on June 1 to toss out Chinese-made toothpaste because diethylene glycol may have been used in place of U.S.-approved thickening agents and sweeteners. Chinese brands cited by the FDA contained 3 to 4 percent of the chemical by weight, and some weren't labeled as having the ingredient, the agency said. The substance, mixed with cough syrup, was responsible for more than 40 deaths in Panama beginning in September 2006, according to the FDA Web site.

The company urged all hotel guests who took the toothpaste home with them to throw it away. The suspect product is from one of Gilchrist & Soames's two Chinese suppliers, Ming Fai Enterprises International Co. The only product being recalled is toothpaste in 0.65- ounce tubes with the label ``Made in China''. Concern about tainted Chinese imports developed in the U.S. after the discovery of contaminated pet food, seafood and toothpaste as well as defective tires and toys with lead paint.

Gilchrist & Soames has a distribution center in the U.S. that sent the toothpaste to hotels in the U.S., Canada, Mexico, Bermuda, Barbados, the Dominican Republic and the Turks & Caicos Islands, according to the company's statement.