As tainted milk is withdrawn, China says supplies are sufficient

BEIJING—The Ministry of Commerce said here on Friday that 3,215 tonnes of milk powder had been removed from retail outlets around the country amid the tainted milk scandal, but supplies of safe domestic milk powder are sufficient.
The ministry is to continue monitoring the market and take effective measures to guarantee supply. A daily report system, initiated on Sept. 15, requires local authorities, major dealers and manufacturers to report key statistics, such as the price, stock and sales of milk powder.
The National Development and Reform Commission also issued an emergency notice, asking local authorities to step up price monitoring and intervene when necessary to stabilize the price of baby milk powder.
More than 6,200 infants have developed kidney stones after drinking baby formula tainted with the hazardous chemical melamine, which makes the protein content of the milk appear higher.
Dairy giant Sanlu, based in the Hebei provincial capital of Shijiazhuang in north China, was the first company exposed in the scandal, but subsequent investigations found a total of 22 manufacturers involved, including leading companies such as the Bright Dairy & Food and Mengniu Group. In the wake of the contaminated baby milk powder scandal, Chinese quality watchdog on Wednesday cancelled all kinds of national inspection exemptions previously given to food producers.
"Considering the particular characteristics of food products and the complexity in the cause of food safety problems, and with a view to further enhancing supervision over food producers, ensuring food safety and protecting consumers' interests," said the State Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine (AQSIQ) in an explanation of the move.
It said relevant companies must stop activities of publicizing their national inspection exemption qualifications. The national inspection exemption labels printed on food products and their packages became invalid from Wednesday. To help companies avoid repeated examinations and reduce their burden, the country began exempting those producing top-quality and globally-competitive products from quality inspections in 2000.
According to previous regulations, any company in China could apply for the inspection-exemption if they had a long standing quality record, large market share, and implemented standards up to or above national or international levels. The products that passed state or province-level inspections on three consecutive occasions were awarded the qualification. While producers still must report the inspection-free products' quality status on a regular basis, AQSIQ organized spot checks on these products annually.
Before the move, AQSIQ had cancelled the exemption qualification of Shijiazhuang-based Sanlu Group and the "Famous Brand" titles of its baby milk powder, other kinds of milk powder and sterilized milk.

—Xinhua