Chinese milk

Posted by Andrew Wadge on September 24th 2008 in Food fraud

The scale of the problem in China caused by adulteration of baby milk with melamine is appalling.  I struggle to comprehend how people can knowingly put the lives of so many babies at risk by adding this substance to milk.

I spoke about the regulation of the food industry on the Today programme and BBC Radio Scotland yesterday morning.  Of course it would be naive to assume that criminals will not attempt to target the food industry here and we know, through attempts to sell counterfeit vodka containing dangerous levels of methanol, that they will.  However, there are, fortunately, big differences between China and the UK and in many ways what is currently happening in China mirrors what we saw in the UK 150 years ago, when adulteration and poisoning from food was commonplace.  That led to the introduction of strict regulations and food standards, placing legal responsibilities on businesses to supply safe food and the establishment of a comprehensive inspection system through local Environmental Health Officers.  So the regulation of food safety in the UK is of a high standard, but we also need to recognise that for well-established businesses in the UK it is simply not in their interests to have their reputation tarnished by contamination incidents.

The authorities in China are determined to bring the regulation of their industry up to European standards but clearly have some way to go.  I would suggest that no one can take any comfort from this incident which highlights, once again, the importance of food businesses here checking the provenance of their supplies from around the world.

add new comment

chinese milk products

Posted by david (not verified) on 21/10/2008 - 11:37

Unfortunately the chinese knew about the melamine fraud prior to the olympic games
but decided to keep it quiet until the games were over. With such a time period available then God only knows
how many 40 foot containers of milk powder
are in transit to different places in the world.
To be frank with 10 percent of chinese farmland being badly polluted I cannot understand why europe accepts any food products from china.
The state of pollution of farmland in china
is of great concern to the chinese themselves,

Melamine

Posted by Peter (not verified) on 16/10/2008 - 14:49

"...the regulation of food safety in the UK is of a high standard...". But for how much longer? The number of Public Analysts in England and Wales is at an all-time low of 25 (and decreasing) ie less than one per 2 000 000 population. And local authorities are committing fewer resources, year-on-year, to food safety. Without Public Analysts, the UK will be unable to fulfil its EU obligations on food safety - and at the rate things are going, this will be in only a couple of years time!

Melamine analysis

Posted by Andrew Wadge on 09/10/2008 - 10:26

Yes, you are correct that a more sensitive detection method can identify melamine at concentrations below 2.5 mg/kg. However, the Commission Decision is not setting out to remove all products containing very low concentrations of melamine from the market.

The European Food Safety Authority has established a level of melamine that can be consumed daily over a lifetime without an appreciable risk to health. This level is 0.5 mg/kg bodyweight. For a 60 kg adult this would equate to 30 mg per day, or to use an example of the Koala biscuits that have recently been withdrawn, this is equivalent to eating over 100 packets of the biscuits a day.

Nevertheless, there is a very clear message that the adulteration of food will not be tolerated, which is why products found to contain melamine at levels above 2.5 mg/kg are being withdrawn from sale and destroyed.

counterfeit food

Posted by Anonymous (not verified) on 29/09/2008 - 18:57

Sadly the some Chinese don’t understand the risk associate with doggy food. The risks involved in wrong doing with food product are too high. I’m glad in the UK action are being taken to tackle this type of problem. We should do all to protect our food and the food industry.

Suggestion regarding to melamine exam standard

Posted by Dustin (not verified) on 28/09/2008 - 08:39

Dear Sir:
I have found that according to the official announcement: http://www.food.gov.uk/news/newsarchive/2008/sep/melamine

The standard of melamine is set at 2.5ppm (2.5mg/kg); to my best knowledge, its the limitation of HPLC-UV analysis. But if the instrument such as GC/MS was used, better sensitivity can provide: at least 0.05ppm. I have contacted the SGS corp and they provide GC/MS melamine examination service and the price per sample is quiet reasonable.

And according to EFSA document:
http://www.efsa.eu.int/cs/BlobServer/Statement/efsa_statement_melamine_en_rev1.pdf?ssbinary=true
the TDI for melamine is 0.5 mg/kg.(check p.7)

I would sincerely suggest to apply more strict standard for melamine contaminated food.

Thank you.

Dustin

Neither Chinese nor UK Infant Formula is Sterile?

Posted by Rob A (not verified) on 26/09/2008 - 11:02

I understand that the Sanlu milk in China has also tested positive for Enterobacter Sakazakii, and that this has occurred in Europe in the past too.

Do you agree that the British public should be told that formula milk is not sterile and poses such a risk?