Fake infant formulas a big problem

Supervision should be strengthened to weed out counterfeit foreign-made infant formulas from the market that are still threatening the life of children, says an article in Guangzhou Daily. Excerpts:

The share of imported infant formulas has grown from 20 percent before the 2008 melamine-tainted milk scandal to 75 percent in major Chinese cities. And in second-tier cities, it has increased from 10 percent to 50 percent, according to Wang Jingtao, deputy-director of the Dairy Association of China.

But before worrying about the hold of foreign-made infant formulas on the Chinese market, we should focus on the packaging of foreign brands, because insiders say as much as 80 percent of the imported infant formulas are products of original equipment manufacturers (that is, original manufacturers of one or more components of products that are resold by another company).

Scient, for example, claimed to make its products from 100 percent imported milk but in June 2009 it was found that its entire supply of milk was from within China. And Sunlife confessed in November 2011 that the use of imported materials in its products was irregular.

Even four years after Scient's exposure, the market is full of fake foreign brands. Since the Measures for the Inspection, Quarantine, Supervision and Administration of Imported and Exported Dairy Products took effect on May 1, the authorities should immediately strengthen supervision to cleanse the market of fake products.

A joint statement issued recently by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and China Dairy Industry Association says infant formulas made by domestic companies and those made by foreign enterprises in China are better than the imported ones. But the fact is that many Chinese parents favor foreign brands, which is ironic in a country that is called "world factory".

(China Daily 05/07/2013 page9)