Dried noodles kill four schoolchildren

BEIJING: Four Chinese children died after eating a dried-noodle snack in the poor southern province of Yunnan, a newspaper said on Wednesday, the latest in a string of food-poisoning accidents across the country.

The children bought the noodles on the way to school on Monday, the Beijing News said.   

"The children began frothing at the mouth, were lapsing in and out of consciousness and clasped their hands together in distress," teacher Yang Tingzhou was quoted as saying.   

The children were rushed to hospital where they died in the emergency room. Local officials were investigating all stores selling non-staple foods in the area, the newspaper said.

There was no suggestion the poisoning was deliberate, it added.   

It said families of the children would be given 6,000 yuan ($800) in compensation.   

Food poisoning is a frequent problem at Chinese schools, especially in rural areas, where lax official supervision encourages canteen contractors to cut costs at the expense of proper hygiene and food safety.   

China has also come under fire for a string of quality scandals involving products including food, toothpaste, drugs and toys.   

Public fears about food safety grew in 2004, when at least 13 babies died of malnutrition in Anhui province, in eastern China, after they were fed fake milk powder with no nutritional value.