3 toddlers die after drinking milk
By Wang Qingchu |
April 9, 2011, Saturday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
AT least three children have died from nitrite poisoning after drinking milk from two dairies in northwestern China. Thirty-five others fell sick after drinking the milk.
Most of the 35 are children under 14 and they are now being treated at two hospitals in Pingliang City in northwest Gansu Province.
One is in a critical condition while the others are stable, Xinhua news agency said, citing a joint statement from the city government and health bureau. The children are being cared for at the Pingliang No. 2 Hospital and the People's Hospital.
An initial investigation showed that the poisoning had been caused by sodium nitrite in milk supplied by two local dairy firms, Xinhua reported.
The two farms which supplied the contaminated milk have been closed and their managers placed under police investigation.
A staff member surnamed Huang at the city government's news office told The Associated Press that the authorities had asked food and health experts to determine the source of the nitrite.
China's food sector has been beset by poisonings and toxin scandals that have shaken consumer confidence, and the fast-growing but fragmented dairy sector has been at the heart of those worries.
In 2008, at least six children died and nearly 300,000 fell ill from powdered milk laced with melamine, an industrial chemical which is harmful to health.
The chemical had been added to low quality or diluted milk to fool inspectors by giving misleadingly high readings for protein levels.
Earlier this year, quality authorities sought to calm renewed public alarm after some dairy companies had been found illegally adding a leather protein powder to dairy products to cheat protein-content checks.
The state quality inspection watchdog last week ordered almost half of China's dairy companies to halt production as part of a campaign to clean up the industry.
Most of the 35 are children under 14 and they are now being treated at two hospitals in Pingliang City in northwest Gansu Province.
One is in a critical condition while the others are stable, Xinhua news agency said, citing a joint statement from the city government and health bureau. The children are being cared for at the Pingliang No. 2 Hospital and the People's Hospital.
An initial investigation showed that the poisoning had been caused by sodium nitrite in milk supplied by two local dairy firms, Xinhua reported.
The two farms which supplied the contaminated milk have been closed and their managers placed under police investigation.
A staff member surnamed Huang at the city government's news office told The Associated Press that the authorities had asked food and health experts to determine the source of the nitrite.
China's food sector has been beset by poisonings and toxin scandals that have shaken consumer confidence, and the fast-growing but fragmented dairy sector has been at the heart of those worries.
In 2008, at least six children died and nearly 300,000 fell ill from powdered milk laced with melamine, an industrial chemical which is harmful to health.
The chemical had been added to low quality or diluted milk to fool inspectors by giving misleadingly high readings for protein levels.
Earlier this year, quality authorities sought to calm renewed public alarm after some dairy companies had been found illegally adding a leather protein powder to dairy products to cheat protein-content checks.
The state quality inspection watchdog last week ordered almost half of China's dairy companies to halt production as part of a campaign to clean up the industry.
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