Candy maker struggles to pull rabbit out of hat

By Wang Hongyi (China Daily)
Updated: 2008-10-09 09:27

SHANGHAI: Although White Rabbit creamy candy has resumed production and will soon return to market, gloom and ambivalence persist among customers.

The confectionery maker said Wednesday it had resumed production using powdered milk confirmed as melamine free, and that about 300 tons of safe candy are awaiting delivery.

Guan Sheng Yuan Food said its candy would likely return to shelves at the end of the month despite the fact its domestic sales ban remains in effect pending further tests.

A local quality agency said it was increasing checks on candy-producing processes to ensure they conformed to food safety standards.

The Shanghai candy maker issued a formal product recall, asking all distributors across the country to call back candy produced before Sept 8.

"The aim is to avoid the risk of confusion between new batches of candy and the existing," said Wang Yiyi, spokeswomen of Guan Sheng Yuan Food.

"The recall work should be finished before mid-October."

Wang also said the packages of new candy will bear green signs with the word "qualified" printed on them, indicating they were made using safe powered milk.

But she refused to disclose the new milk source.

The candy was first produced in Shanghai in 1943 and throughout its various incarnations has fascinated people in China and around the world with its edible paper.

But with White Rabbit's 45 percent milk content, analysts believe the crisis could cripple the brand.

"The damage to their reputation could be extreme, causing a corresponding decrease in consumption," said Liu Zheng, an analyst with the Beijing-based SDR Consultant Company.

"The subject of the hour is that consumers have lost their confidence in the dairy market, so they probably won't dare buy their products for half a year, or even a year," he said.

For 26-year-old Xu Ying, like many other Shanghai natives, White Rabbit creamy candy has been favorite snack since childhood.

"The first thing I did when coming home from school was to pop a White Rabbit into my mouth," she said.

"Consumers might be willing to give it another chance."