Beijing Orders Sweeping Dairy Product Tests

China sought to reassure Taiwanese consumers that its dairy products were safe yesterday, a day after authorities confirmed that a toddler in Hong Kong developed kidney stones from consuming milk and cookies laced with melamine. Beijing has ordered that all milk products more than a month old be pulled for testing.

Spokesman Yang Yi of China’s Taiwan Affairs Office said at a news conference in Beijing that authorities were very concerned about the scandal, in which contaminated infant formula killed four babies and sickened tens of thousands of children nationwide.

“We have taken a serious approach,” Yang said. “China has launched a thorough investigation into this issue to help restore the trust of Taiwanese consumers.”

After China’s melamine scandal broke last month, Taiwanese authorities launched a sweeping inspection of milk powders and related food items. More than 160 products containing Chinese milk and vegetable-based proteins have been removed from stores.

Source: The Associated Press