Hong Kong - Packets of the popular snack Pringles were Wednesday removed from Hong Kong supermarkets after tests in mainland China found them to contain a cancer-causing chemical. Barbecue-flavoured packets of the potato crisps were taken off sale in Wellcome, one of the city's leading supermarket chains, after potassium bromate was discovered in samples in China.
Potassium bromate is a preservative allowed in limited quantities in the US but banned in China, Hong Kong and other countries because tests have found it to be carcinogenic.
The tests that discovered the ingredient were reportedly carried out in China in July when officials in the port of Zhuhai found the ingredient in imported Pringles.
However, the South China Morning Post reported Wednesday that the snack's manufacturer Procter & Gamble indicated that the tested batch had been unofficially imported from the US.
Pringles sold in China and Hong Kong are made in mainland China and contain no potassium bromate, according to Procter & Gamble.
Hong Kong's Food and Environmental Hygiene Department was Wednesday investigating the case and is expected to contact US authorities for more information.
