By Yining Su
Image credit: China National Radio Home
Twenty five people have been arrested in the first three days following the implementation of a new regulation designed to limit the amount of infant milk powder that is brought from Hong Kong to the mainland.
The new regulation, which limits people crossing from Hong Kong to the mainland to two cans of powder, came into effect March 1, and by the evening of March 3, 115 cans of formula had been seized, and 17 Hong Kong residents and eight mainlanders had been arrested, according to the South China Morning Post. Those arrested face up to two years in prison, along with fines of up to HK$500,000.
The measure was proposed after Hong Kong was faced with a baby formula shortage in January as a result of “parallel traders” who were buying formula in Hong Kong to sell in the mainland.
Hong Kong infant formula became popular with mainlanders after the 2008 infant formula scandal, when 6 babies died and thousands more became ill after drinking infant formula laced with melamine, an industrial chemical.
