Asian Countries Ban Chinese Milk Products

By Peter Bachmann, on Sunday, 21 September 2008

Published in : The News, News September 2008

Several Asian countries, including Japan, Singapore and Malaysia, have banned Chinese dairy products after baby formula and fluid milk was found to be contaminated with melamine, a toxic chemical added to artificially increase the protein level.

Japan, Singapore, Malaysia, Burma, Bangladesh as well as Hong Kong have banned Chinese dairy products, Asian media reports. Several food producers in Asia have also withdrawn products made with Chinese powder or fluid milk.

In the meantime, the Chinese government has asked its provinces to set up 24-hour hotlines to assist people that may have consumed melamine-contaminated milk from the three main dairy producers, Yili, Mengniu and Bright Dairy. Doctors are being told to provide free medical checks for babies that suffer kidney problems.

The European Union said no Chinese milk products have officially entered EU countries, but is warning that illegally distributed dairy products from China should not be consumed. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued a warning not to buy dairy products from China over the Internet, and has started an information campaign in cities with a large Chinese population.