Contaminated Milk in China

Recently, China had to recall dairy products. The products had been laced with melamine, a toxic chemical used in making plastic. Many became ill from the laced milk, and some infants died. It turns out that lacing milk in China was a common practice known by many people. However, the farmers say they did not know what was in it was toxic.
Farmers began using “protein powder” in their products to fool quality checks. Some of the dairy cows were under nourished so the milk was not of high enough quality. So, companies began selling “protein powder” to farmers, promising to help pass quality inspections on the milk. The farmers say they never questioned what was in the powder. They didn’t feel the need to.
Not only is the milk contaminated, but so are eggs. Therefore, there must have been melamine in the feed as well as being directly poured into milk. While the amount of the toxin in the eggs is lower than that of directly pouring it into the milk, it is still at unsafe levels.
Some companies claim they knew there were additives in the milk. Although they say they did not know melamine was one of them. Among these companies is Nestle.
Melamine works to fool the quality check by appearing to be protein due to its chemical makeup. When talking to local farmers, they said some farmers would also add hydrogen peroxide into the milk, further contaminating it.
One man claims he tried to warn about unauthorized substances being added to milk products. He says he told regulators and dairy makers about the substances in 05 and 06. He says they told him they would have someone look into it, but they failed to do so. He also complained to China Central Television, which led to a full report on the issue with scenes of the additive being dumped into the milk. While officials confirmed the gentlemen’s complaint, they said they could not find any evidence of any wrongdoing.
Companies now are being more cautious. They are checking for melamine among other possible additives by running several tests on the product. However, some amounts of melamine are still being found even in those companies products who claim to be checking for contamination.
I think the situation itself was a bad one, but some good things occurred. It was very unethical of the “protein powder” producing companies to switch from natural stuff to something that could be fatal without letting people know what was in their product. They misled consumers about what was in their product. I feel sorry for the farmers who are now suffering because of the protein powder company’s poor choices. It was a good thing that the products were recalled, so that the spread of the toxic substances could be controlled. I think the “protein powder” companies should have to pay hugely for what they did to the Chinese public and even internationally.