Tainted toothpaste importer convicted
This article was originally published in The Tan Sheet
Executive Summary
Selective Imports Corp. pleads no contest to a count of selling adulterated products - nearly 80,000 tubes of Chinese "Cooldent" toothpaste containing diethylene glycol, a toxic substitute for glycerin. Los Angeles City Attorney Rocky Delgadillo Feb. 27 said the Vernon, Calif.-based firm will serve three years probation, follow FDA guidelines for recall, correction and removal of the affected product and donate $33,000 to a nonprofit group. FDA discovered Selective Imports sold the toothpaste, manufactured by Goldcredit International Enterprises in China, to U.S. distributors from December 2005 to May 2007 (1"The Tan Sheet" March 10, 2008, In Brief). The case against distributor and co-defendant Vernon Sales Inc. was diverted for one year pending its adherence to FDA recall protocol