L 27318 Official Journal of the European Union 15.10.2008 COMMISSION COMMISSION DECISION of 14 October 2008 imposing special conditions governing the import of products containing milk or milk products originating in or consigned from China, and repealing Commission Decision 2008/757/EC (notified under document number C(2008) 6086) (Text with EEA relevance) (2008/798/EC) THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES, Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, Having regard to Regulation (EC) No 178/2002 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 28 January 2002 laying down the general principles and requirements of food law, establishing the European Food Safety Authority and laying down procedures in matters of food safety (1), and in particular Article 53(2), second subparagraph, thereof, Whereas: Article 53 of Regulation (EC) No 178/2002 provides for the possibility to adopt appropriate Community emergency measures for food and feed imported from a third country in order to protect human health, animal health or the environment, where the risk cannot be contained satisfactorily by means of measures taken by the Member States individually. The European Commission was recently made aware that high levels of melamine were found in infant milk and other milk products in China. Melamine is a chemical intermediate used in the manufacture of amino resins and plastics and is used as a monomer and as an additive for plastics. High levels of melamine in food can result in very severe health effects. Imports of milk and milk products, including milk powder, originating from China are not allowed into the Community; however, certain composite products () O] L 31, 1.2.2002, p. 1. (i.e. products which contain at the same time a processed product of animal origin and a product of non-animal origin) containing processed milk components might have reached the European Union’s markets. Although factual information available indicates that no composite products are imported which are intended for the particular nutritional uses of infants or young children, certain such composite products, depending of their specific formulation and in particular on the proportion of milk product content, could have been presented for import without undergoing systematic border checks pursuant to Commission Decision 2007/275[EC of 17 April 2007 concerning lists of animals and products to be subject to controls at border inspection posts under Council Directives 91/496/EEC and 97/78/EC (?). Taking into account that such products represent the primary, and in some cases sole, source of nourishment for infants and young children, it is appropriate to prohibit the import into the Community of any such products originating from China. Member States should ensure that any such products which were to be found on the market should be destroyed without delay. As regards other composite products (such as biscuits and chocolate), which are only a minor part of a varied diet, after a request from the European Commission for an assessment of the risks related to the presence of melamine in composite product, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) issued a statement in which it concludes that the highest risk would be represented by a worst case scenario according to which children with high daily consumption of biscuits and chocolate containing the highest proportion of milk powder (which varies between 16 % and more than 20 %), with a contamination equal to the highest level found in milk powder from China, could potentially exceed the tolerable daily intake (TDI) of melamine (0,5 mg/kg body weight). () O] L 116, 4.5.2007, p. 9.