BEIJING, Oct 8: China may send a team of food-safety experts abroad for the first time after Filipino children fell ill from eating Chinese-made milk candies, state media said on Monday.

The special team will be sent to the Philippines if necessary to assist a government investigation there into the candies, the China Daily reported, citing a commerce ministry spokesman.

The 23 schoolchildren, aged nine and 10, were rushed to hospital on Thursday suffering from stomach aches, vomiting and dizziness after eating candy given out at a birthday party on Bantayan Island near Cebu.

A local school official there said the candies were Ube Milk Candy and were made in Guangdong, China, according to the wrapper. Sales of the candies have been temporarily banned at local stores pending results of the investigation.

The Chinese government has asked its consulate in Cebu to look into the matter and submit a report, the China Daily said.

—AFP