China investigating milk additive used by dairy

So far, there is no evidence that the substance is dangerous and there have not been any reports of illness, but the  action underscores  the  government's recurring difficulties in policing the manufacturing of products.

The  problem  was  highlighted most  recently  when  infant  formula tainted with  the  industrial  chemical melamine  sickened  nearly  300,000 Chinese  babies  and  was  blamed  in the deaths of at least six infants.

In a notice posted late Wednesday on its Website, the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine said it was researching the additive called OMP, a milk protein added by the Mengniu Dairy Group Co. to its Telunsu line. It said results would be published at a later date.

A  Mengniu statement released Wednesday said OMP — or osteopath milk protein — helps with the absorption of calcium and promotes bone growth.  It is commonly used in other countries under the name "Milk Basic Protein" or MBP, Mengniu said.

"The safety of MBP has been recognized by authoritative international organizations,” the statement said without giving more details.

Mengniu  spokeswoman  Zhao Yuanhua  said  the  statement was  issued in response to a report Wednesday by Hexun.com, a Chinese business news Web site, on the presence of  OMP  and  IGF-1,  a  growth  hormone, in the Telunsu line. The statement also said that IGF-1 naturally occurred in milk and was not present in unusually high levels in Telunsu.

China has been trying to monitor the overall usage of additives in food products. In December, the Ministry of Health released a list of substances banned from being added to food. They included chemicals used in industrial dyes, insecticides and drain cleaners. OMP and IGF-1 are not on the list nor are they on a list of approved additives.

Hexun.com said China’s quality watchdog sent a letter to Mengniu earlier this month asking  it  to prove the safety of the two substances. It is unclear what prompted the investigation.

Zhao referred all other questions to the office of Mengiu's chairman of the board, where telephones rang unanswered.

In China, food scares have included the use of the banned cancer causing industrial dye Sudan Red to color egg yolks. Boric acid, commonly used as an insecticide, is mixed with noodles and meatballs to increase elasticity. Industrial formaldehyde and lye, used in making soap and drain cleaner,  is added  to water used to soak some types of dried seafood to make the products appear fresher and bigger.

"Any substance  intentionally added  to  food,  for  technological  or other purposes, needs to be evaluated for its human safety," said Dr. Angelika  Tritscher  of  the World  Health Organization's  Department  of  Food Safety,  Zoo noses  and  Food borne Diseases. "It's totally unacceptable to add anything to food without proper testing first.

"Tritscher said she had not heard about the protein substance OMP but said that the growth hormone IGF-1 was harmless if taken orally.

The recurring problems indicate that a lax inspection regime still exists, despite repeated promises by the central government to step up product safety monitoring.

Last  year's  milk  scandal,  where nitrogen-rich  melamine  was  added to  milk  to  fool  protein  tests,  also exposed  loose  controls  over  large companies like Mengniu and Yili In-dustrial Group Co., whose  products were recalled.