10,666 children still in hospitals because of tainted milk, China says
BEIJING — More than 10,000 children remain hospitalized as a result of China’s tainted milk scandal, Chinese health officials revealed, while the country defended its dairy products Thursday at a World Trade Organization meeting.
In a statement on its Web site, the Health Ministry said Wednesday that 10,666 children were still in hospitals after drinking milk contaminated with melamine.
No new deaths have been recorded, it said. The scandal so far has been blamed for the deaths of four babies and the sickening of about 54,000 other children in China.
But the effects of the scandal continue to be felt. China’s food exports have suffered, with more than 30 countries restricting Chinese dairy imports and in some cases all Chinese food.
At a meeting of the World Trade Organization in Geneva, Chinese officials sought to limit the damage, saying that Beijing was making enormous efforts to deal with the problem and that no new cases of contamination had been detected since Sept. 20.
The officials also said the contamination had been accidental, contradicting a World Health Organization assessment that the chemical was added deliberately.
Until this week, China has had no standards for the amount of melamine allowed in food products.
Health Ministry guidelines released Wednesday now limit melamine to 1 part per million for infant formula and 2.5 parts per million for milk, milk powder and food products that contain more than 15 percent dairy.
Levels of melamine discovered in batches of tainted milk powder have registered as much as 6,196 parts per million.
China’s Asian neighbors, meanwhile, continued to pull Chinese-made products after tests revealed melamine.
Singapore’s food safety agency said Thursday it found traces of melamine in samples of blueberry and chocolate flavored Cadbury Choclairs and Panda Dairy-brand Whole Milk Powder imported from China.
In Hong Kong, authorities said melamine had been found in EDO Pack Almond Cacao Biscuit Sticks produced by a Hong Kong company.
