Wen orders dairy product checks
18 September 2008
Premier Wen Jiabao ordered all dairy products to be checked for contamination as melamine-tainted milk powder was revealed to have caused more than 6,200 infants to fall ill, the South China Morning Post reported. A third baby was also reported to have died after drinking milk made from the contaminated powder. Health Minister Chen Zhu said that authorities had been aware of "problems" in milk powder since mid-July, but had been unable to determine their cause and were unaware of the link to kidney stones. At least 5,000 inspectors in 1,400 teams have been dispatched to oversee the production of baby formula at 22 companies, including Hebei-based Sanlu, whose products have been found to contain melamine.