Sept. 17 (Bloomberg) -- Food and Drug Administration inspectors haven't found any tainted baby formula from China in visits to hundreds of U.S. specialty stores, the agency said.

The inspectors, working with state and local officials, began checking shelves after the FDA warned last week that Chinese baby formula contaminated with the industrial chemical melamine may have entered the U.S. illegally, spokeswoman Judy Leon said today in a telephone interview.

Tainted milk powder in China has killed three children and sickened more than 1,300. Leon responded to questions about the FDA's actions after Senator Charles Schumer, a New York Democrat, issued a statement today saying the agency should send inspectors to ethnic markets in the U.S. to be certain that Chinese milk and baby food products aren't in stock.

``The FDA has been doing that since we put out the health advisory,'' Leon said, referring to infant formula. ``Not one can of Chinese infant formula has been found.''

Leon said she didn't have immediate information on other Chinese dairy items. In addition to baby formula, a supermarket chain in Hong Kong said it stopped selling Yili frozen yogurt bars made in China after they were found to contain traces of melamine.

Schumer said he was concerned about tainted milk products on local store shelves because some Asian markets ``evade U.S. safeguards and buy black-market goods'' directly from China.

`All Hands on Deck'

``We need all hands on deck to keep this dangerous contamination from reaching U.S. consumers,'' Schumer said. ``Black-market Chinese goods and food regularly slip through lax international and domestic inspections.''

China has ordered the recall of melamine-tainted milk products made by 22 companies, fired four officials and detained a company chairwoman since news of the tainted dairy products unfolded. The outbreak raised questions about the effectiveness of tighter controls China promised after scares over contaminated seafood, toothpaste and pet food exports.

Melamine can be used to disguise diluted milk because it can make the protein level appear higher than it is. The chemical, used to make plastics and in tanning leather, was found in exported pet food last year and was blamed for killing cats and dogs in the U.S.

To contact the reporter on this story: Aliza Marcus in Washington at amarcus8@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: September 17, 2008 17:14 EDT