China’s tainted baby formula

Here we go again, said Keith Bradsher in The New York Times. China’s Health Ministry recalled 700 tons of baby formula on Thursday after discovering it had been “contaminated” with the industrial chemical melamine. So far, the tainted formula has produced “one baby’s death and kidney problems in at least 50 more.” This is “especially embarrassing” for Chinese authorities: When melamine made its way into pet food in the U.S. last year, they “promised” it would never be found in food products again.

“China is no stranger to tainted” baby food, said Jennifer Jordan in AOL’s Parent Dish. Several years ago, 13 babies died after ingesting contaminated formula in that country. Chinese authorities “are vowing severe punishment for the perpetrators” this time, but considering their recent problems, they still face “a hard battle in convincing other countries their products are safe.”

Well, this recall does demonstrate the Chinese government’s “efforts to put in place mechanism to respond to such emergencies,” said Loretta Chao in The Wall Street Journal online. And at least no injuries have been reported in the United States, as the FDA hasn’t approved any of China’s baby formula for import. But “some may have been illegally imported, and could be on sale in some ethnic grocery stores” in the U.S., so we’re not entirely in the clear yet.

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