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China
More arrests in tainted milk scandal, more products pulled from stores
Article published on the 2008-09-30 Latest update 2008-09-30 13:52 TU
A dairy farm in Wuhan, Hubei province
(Reuters: China Daily)
Police in northern China have arrested 27 people in their investigation into contaminated milk that has killed four children and caused 53,000 others to fall ill. The probe is centred on Hebei province, where milk company Sanlu has its headquarters. Sanlu Group is at the heart of the scandal. Those arrested are among 36 detained since authorities in Hebei began their probe into the group.
The investigation followed the discovery that the industrial chemical melamine, which is largely used to make plastics, had been added to Sanlu powdered milk.
According to the China Daily newspaper, police investigations in Hebei had shown that melamine was produced at underground plants and sold to breeding farms and milk purchasing stations.
The paper said that Chinese officials now see the purchasing stations as the main venue for spreading the contaminated milk and they have started a national campaign to revamp the system.
The newspaper cites 31 provinces as having set up special task forces to supervise the purchasing centres and implement more standardised practices.
In an interview with the People's Daily, the Agriculture Minister, Sun Zhengcai, said the government is working on ending the crisis.
"We will resolutely put an end to the practice of adding melamine to fresh milk,” he said. "We will carefully monitor the production, sale and processing of fresh milk.”
Prime Minister Wen Jiabao on the weekend pledged that China would clean up its milk production and restore its international reputation.
The crisis continues to have repercussions abroad.
British candy maker Cadbury said Monday it had found traces of melamine in chocolates made at its Beijing factory and had those products recalled from Hong Kong, Taiwan and Australia.
South Korea’s food watchdog, the Korea Food and Drug Administration, said Tuesday that two more imports from China were contaminated with melamine. This makes a total of six locally discovered tainted products.
The Bangladesh Standard and Testing Institute found traces of melamine in milk powder made by the Chinese firm Yashili.
Azmal Hossain, the head of the institute, said, "We have collected the products from the market, and tests show there are 7.22 milligrames of melamine per kilogramme.”
"This level has the potential to cause kidney failure in young children," he added.
In the wake of the milk scandal, over a dozen countries in Asia and Africa, as well as the 27-member European Union, have banned or limited consumption of a wide range of Chinese food products.
