Complaints spike over subpar baby formula imports

Having low confidence in domestic baby formula brands, Chinese consumers have turned to imported formula but are finding a growing number of problems with those products, too. [Photo / China Daily]

Consumers' low confidence in domestic baby formula has led to a surge in complaints against imported baby formulas as some businesses turn to inferior foreign brands, experts said.

Nearly two-thirds of the complaints that the China Consumers' Association received about baby formula in the first half of the year were about foreign brands.

The association received 744 complaints about infant formula in the last six months, double the number in the same period last year.

The association declined China Daily's request on Sunday to say which brands got the most complaints.

Nearly 90 percent of the complaints were over quality issues, such as finding foreign objects - including worms and iron wire - in the cans.

Some infants suffered adverse effects such as diarrhea and allergic reactions, and some products were found being sold after their expiration dates.

Industry experts said that one reason for the rise in complaints against imported brands is that some Chinese businesspeople have been taking advantage of consumers' blind trust in such brands.

Heitiki, a milk powder brand which its distributor in Shenzhen claims is "a top brand" in New Zealand, was discovered in 2011 to be registered by Chinese businesspeople and unknown to New Zealanders.

"Some so-called foreign brands are not really worthy of the name. They're high in price but inferior in quality," said Qiu Baochang, head of the legal team of the China Consumers' Association.

Xile Lier, the Suzhou partner of the Swiss baby formula manufacturer Hero Group, was accused of deliberately mislabeling milk powder in March.

The company changed the expiration dates and relabeled formula for older babies as the pricier ones for younger babies. The infant formula is sold on the Chinese mainland under the label "Hero Nutradefense".

"Customers turned to foreign brands, especially when it came to baby formula, after 2008 (when the melamine-contaminated baby formula scandal occurred)," said Wang Dingmian, chairman of the Guangzhou Dairy Association. "Some Chinese people have sniffed out a business opportunity."

Products manufactured and imported from overseas but targeted solely at China have taken root in recent years, Wang said.