Purdue Researchers Develop Quick Melamine Test

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind.—Researchers at Purdue University created a test to detect levels of melamine in milk and milk powder in about 25 seconds.

An estimated 50,000 Chinese children were sickened and several died after drinking the melamine-contaminated formula. The chemical also was found in the contaminated pet food produced in China and was responsible for the deaths of a reported 8,500 dogs and cats in the United States in March 2007.

U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued new guidelines in November limiting melamine in dairy products to 1 part-per-million or less.

"Even without direct contamination, trace amounts of melamine sometimes make their way into consumable products because melamine is used in manufacturing and is found in many packaging materials," said R. Graham Cooks, Purdue's Henry B. Hass distinguished professor of chemistry, who led the team that developed the analysis method. "At trace levels, the chemical is not known to be a health threat and has been deemed safe by the FDA. Our analysis provides a way to determine whether the amounts present exceed safe levels."