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China Works To Calm Fear Over Tainted Milk

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The Associated Press

Published: September 21, 2008

BEIJING - China's leaders scrambled Saturday to contain public dismay over widespread contamination of milk supplies, castigating local officials for negligence while moving to tamp down criticism of the government's response.

And the food scare has moved to Japan, where Marudai Food Co. announced a voluntary recall of five snacks that might contain melamine.
Chinese officials promised to keep stores supplied with clean milk and set up hot lines to help people cope with one of the worst product safety scandals in years.
Milk and dairy products from 22 companies have been recalled after batches tainted with the toxin melamine sickened more than 6,200 children and left four infants dead.

Trying to shore up public confidence, Premier Wen Jiabao told senior Communist Party members that official misconduct contributed to the milk contamination and earlier product scandals.

In Japan, the Marudai Food Co. has not received any reports of people sickened by eating the five snacks subject to the recall - including Matcha Azuki Mirukuman, Cream Panda and Gratin Crepe Corn.

According to Marudai, its tainted snack products were made at a factory of its Chinese subsidiary. Media reports of melamine-contaminated fresh milk in China prompted the firm to check its products and discover it has used fresh milk from manufacturers linked to melamine contamination, leading to the recall.

In the 10 days since the government revealed that Shijiazhuang Sanlu Group Co. sold tainted milk powder and infant formula, sketchy details have exposed one local government cover-up as well as the sale of contaminated milk by China's biggest dairies, many of them state-owned.

Information from McClatchy-Tribune was used in this report.

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