The producer of China's iconic White Rabbit milk candy said on Monday the sweets would return to the domestic market within the next few days, as the products had passed Shanghai quality supervision administration tests.

The Guanshengyuan company last month recalled all its exports, some of which tested positive for melamine, and announced the suspension of domestic sales on September 26.

Guanshengyuan general manager Wen Mao said the company had produced 650 tons of White Rabbit candies since the sales suspension.

He said the candies would return to the domestic market in mid October, without specifying a date.

The company would change the candy's packaging and put on new labels that show the products met quality standards on the labeling.

White Rabbit candy, first produced in 1959, is a household name in China, and is sold to more than 50 countries and regions.

Milk powder constitutes 45 percent of the candy's ingredients, giving it its renowned creamy taste and texture.

A veteran employee of Guanshengyuan, who declined to be named, said the firm's milk powder supply came both from the parent dairy company of Guangming and other suppliers, whose products met the state's quality standards.

Guangming was among a group of major Chinese dairy producers, including Mengniu and Yili, involved in the ongoing scandal over melamine contamination that killed three babies and sickened thousands of other children with kidney stones.

(Xinhua News Agency October 14, 2008)