China Tightens Food-Industry Standards After Melamine-Tainted Milk in 2008
China told national and local authorities to improve the safety of milk products as it moves to prevent incidents like the discovery of an industrial chemical in dairy products in 2008.
Producers must meet a revised industry standard from the end of October, China’s State Council, or Cabinet, said in a statement on its website on Sept. 25. Any failure will result in the suspension of the company’s operating license, it said.
China, the world’s third-largest milk producer, wants the dairy industry to meet higher standards after melamine, used to make plastics and tan leather, was found in infant milk powder and other products two years ago. At least six babies died and about 300,000 fell ill countrywide after consuming tainted goods. The chemical was discovered in 22 companies’ products.
Some suppliers added the chemical to diluted milk to make the protein content appear higher, the Chinese government said. The chemical was first found in infant milk powder made by Sanlu Group Co., and in products of China Mengniu Dairy Co., Inner Mongolia Yili Industrial Group Co. and Bright Dairy & Food Co.
A registration system should be established to trace all melamine in the market from wholesalers to retailers, in order to prevent it from being used in dairy production, the General Office of the State Council said.
Melamine Tests
Dairy enterprises should check for melamine in all products before distributing them and other food companies should test for the chemical in all milk products they buy and keep records of the results, the council said in its statement.
Government agencies will strengthen supervision on dairy product safety, and local governments should send officials, as resident supervisors, to all dairy companies to enforce the safety regulations, it said.
The government will increase inspections of infant-formula production plants and will shut down those that are unable to meet the sanitary requirements, according to the statement.
The State Council also called for a crackdown on illegal dairy production.
On Sept. 21, Chinese police arrested six people and detained 41 in connection with the distribution of melamine- tainted milk powder, the state-run Xinhua news agency reported.
--Feiwen Rong. Editors: Paul Tighe, Stanley James
To contact Bloomberg News staff for this story: Feiwen Rong in Beijing at +86-10-6649-7563 or frong2@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Paul Tighe at ptighe@bloomberg.net
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