SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) — A jury awarded $16.7 million to a couple whose daughter died after choking on a gel candy that's now banned in the United States.
Yvonne and Gil Enrile sued Taiwan-based Sheng Hsiang Jen Foods Co. after their 11-year-old daughter, Michelle, choked in April 1999 on sticky candy containing a dangerous gel. The girl remained in a coma until her death in July 2001.
Lawyers for the family told a Santa Clara County jury last week the candy contained a substance called conjac gel, which is derived from a type of yam. Unlike the gels found in most chewy candies, conjac does not dissolve in the mouth and must be chewed.