TAINTED MILK: China prepares for the worst

2008/09/16
BERNAMA

BEIJING, TUES:

China is preparing for more cases of babies falling ill from feeding on melamine-contaminated milk with the Health Ministry warning of “possibly rising cases” Tuesday, a day after reporting two deaths and 1,253 infants diagnosed with kidney stones.



The official Xinhua News Agency quoted the ministry as saying that all grassroots medical agencies were prepared for additional cases.

Reports of babies falling sick from consuming Sanlu brand formula have poured in from a third of the country with the highest numbers so far in the provinces of Gansu, Jiangsu and Hubei.



China Daily on Tuesday quoted Health Minister Chen Zhu as saying that the number of victims could rise sharply in the coming days as more parents take their children for check ups.

“Their number could rise further as the search for more infants fed with Sanlu milk food spread across the country’s rural areas,” China Daily reported.

A five-month-old boy and eight-month-old girl died of kidney failure in May and July respectively in Gansu, the only reported fatalities to date.

The Health Ministry said Monday that 10,000 infants fed with milk produced by Sanlu, one of China’s biggest dairy producers, had undergone tests and 53 babies were in critical condition.

Sanlu Group, which is 43 per cent owned by New Zealand’s diary giant Fonterra, issued an apology on Monday.

Authorities have detained 19 persons and two brothers in northern Hebei province have admitted to mixing melamine in milk they supplied to Sanlu.

Melamine, a chemical used to make plastics and fertilisers, is rich in nitrogen and when mixed into milk, can make its protein level appear higher than it actually is.

New Zealand premier Helen Clark said on Monday her government had alerted senior officials Beijing after local Chinese officials failed to act to recall the tainted milk.

The scandal is another setback in China’s efforts to repair its quality control image after a series of food safety scares last year including melamine-tainted pet food exported to the United States.