Third baby dies in China milk crisis
Illnesses caused by tainted formula skyrocket, and more products test positive for contamination.
SHANGHAI — China's troubles with tainted baby formula grew into a national crisis today as health officials reported that a third infant had died, the number of illnesses skyrocketed to 6,244 and products from 22 companies tested positive for contamination with the industrial chemical melamine.
The number of infants sickened after ingesting the tainted powdered milk was five times more than what the government reported Monday. The new figures showed that 1,327 babies remained hospitalized, with 158 suffering from acute kidney failure, China's health minister, Chen Zhu, said at a news conference today in Beijing.
The Sanlu Group, a large state-owned dairy producer, has been the focus of the scandal since the issue came to light last week. But on Tuesday, China's General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine said that it had inspected 491 batches of baby formula powder produced by 109 companies.
The agency said two of the 22 producers that sold tainted formula -- Qingdao-based Suokang and Yashili of Guangdong province -- had also exported it to Bangladesh, Yemen, Myanmar, Burundi and Gabon. Test batches of those products showed no melamine.
Chen said the government was establishing a hotline and taking other steps to inform consumers about recalls and what products were safe.
Melamine, commonly used in making plastics and fertilizers, has been added by Chinese businesses to artificially boost protein readings in animal feed and foods, even though it adds no nutritional value. Last year, pet foods containing melamine from China sickened and killed thousands of dogs and cats in the U.S.
Although melamine itself isn't considered toxic, combined with other compounds it can cause kidney problems. Many infants who had consumed Sanlu formula developed kidney stones.
"This is a disaster to China's entire dairy industry and a huge crisis," Luo Yunbo, dean of the College of Food Science and Nutritional Engineering at China Agricultural University, said after learning of the test results. "The entire industry really needs serious self-examination and introspection."
Last week, when Sanlu's problems became public, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration warned consumers to avoid buying infant formula imported from China. There is no indication that tainted milk powder has made it to the U.S.
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