Mengniu, one of the largest dairy producers in China and a culprit in the 2008 melamine scandal, has been caught with tainted milk once again. Carcinogenic toxins were found in their milk last week, and last night their website was hacked, presumably in response to the contamination. more ›

Welcome to our humble restaurant! To start you off tonight, our anonymous chef has prepared an appetizer of his "four recommendations for eating in China" after which you will be free to dive into your main course: pictures of scary additives and scarier food prep. Bon apetit! more ›

Melamine scandal activist Zhao Lianhai (赵连海) has spoken out against the detention of Ai Weiwei and others while in talks with the police this week. Zhou, whose son was made ill by the 2008 melamine scandal and who campaigned rigorously for just compensation for all victims, was sentenced to prison in November of last year for inciting disorder. Released on medical leave in December, he broke his public silence this week to condemn Ai Weiwei's arrest. more ›

Well they certainly plan on trying. The Shanghai-based candy company has struggled to recover from melamine contamination two years ago, and is seizing on the Year of the Rabbit for a comeback. In the coming months, they plan to more than double production, expand their range of candies, launch an overseas ad campaign and market the sweets in a Chinese animated film tie-in. more ›

Mengniu can't seem to catch a break: first there was that whole melamine scare two years ago and now police are investigating its involvement in spreading false rumors that its competitors' products made babies to grow breasts. more ›

Following the embarassment of finding out that melamine was still in the milk, years after the first scandal rocked China and the world, China has decided to change rules... relating to protein levels. By lowering the new minimum protein level of raw milk to 2.8% from 2.95%, officials are hoping to stop farmers from needing to pump up figures. Says China Daily, the new standard is "more realistic" because many dairy cows are fed "low-quality feed." more ›

Wow, were the Sanlu trials over this quick? It's been only two months since we first heard about the charges brought against Shanghai Panda Dairy Co., which was accused of deliberately reselling melamine-tainted milk (that they got from the 2008 toxic milk powder scandal, natch), and three people have already been sentenced. Wang Yuechao, ex-rep and deputy GM of Shanghai Panda was given a five year sentence and a 400,000RMB fine. Hong Qide, former GM, was sentenced to four-and-a-half years and fined 300,000RMB. Chen Dehua, a deputy GM, will be in the clinker for three years and will pay 200,000RMB. Will the melamine = fast track to jail message resonate with others hoping to profiteer off the toxic substance? Hope so, though with other cases popping up around the country, it's hard to say. more ›

• A lot of China's work in Africa has been called everything from "rogue donating" that "hurts ordinary system," but there are a lot of myths and half-truths that need to be addressed before we can accurately assess what they're actually doing there. [Aidwatch]
• China apparently has 8,000 or so credit risks, since it holds billions of dollars in off-balance-sheet debt that would vastly undermine its 9% growth rate. [WSJ]
• More than 300 villagers attacked a Guangdong government building on Sunday to protest a project that would've diverted some of its water to a neighboring town. [China Daily]

Four people have been arrested in Northern China in response to a crackdown on milk products tainted with melamine, the same industrial chemical held responsible for six deaths and sickening 300,000 in 2008. more ›

With a name as cute as the Shanghai Panda Dairy Company, you would imagine their milk would be at least innocuous, if not cuddly and adorable. Unfortunately, that's not the case: the same company was indicted in the 2008 melamine milk scandals that killed six infants and sickened hundreds of thousands more was caught again for diluting their products with melamine. Though the factories have been shut, products recalled, and three of their top executives jailed, it seems that the government inspection agencies in charge of removing the tainted milk from shelves around town haven't done the best job at informing the public. So, if you're even considering buying Chinese milk powder, make sure to check the label first for any prominently placed pandas. more ›

Zhang Yujun and Geng Jinpin, who were both sentenced to death in January for their roles in the melamine milk scandal, are now executed. Both had tried to appeal their sentences, but had their appeals turned down in March. While the government has been gung-ho about throwing out harsh sentences against various players in the scandal - which sickened scores of infants across the nation and killed at least six - it's been less interested in investigating accusations that news of the tainting had been surpressed for fears of bad publicity during the Beijing Olympics. more ›

Dumex, the powdered-milk unit of France's Danone, is now under investigation in Shanghai for possibly producing milk powder tainted with melamine. 48 Chinese infants who drink Dumex have allegedly suffered kidney illnesses, though the company says there is no evidence right now that the infants were sickened by the milk powder. Source: Xinhua more ›

A Chinese court handed down the sentences for three of the people involved in the contaminated milk scandal, and it wasn't pretty. Zhang Yujun, the head of a workshop that was allegedly China's largest source of melamine, and Geng Jiping, a melamine powder buyer and reseller, were both given the death penalty. more ›

Inspectors testing cream cakes sold in bakeries around town for melamine did not find the kidney stone-causing agent but they did find high levels of bacteria present in the cakes, and no, they're not of the good kind. According to Shanghai Daily: more ›

Beginning Jan 1, Mengniu, one of China's leading dairy firms, has launched a new advertising campaign entitled "Happy Niu Year" which is scheduled to run on television, in print and online, all the way through to Feb 9. The word "Niu" is a play on the Chinese word "牛" which means cow (as well as ox and bull) and this year happens to be the Year of the Bull. This is the first major ad campaign by a Chinese dairy company since the melamine scandal struck late last year. The television commercial for this campaign follows after the jump more ›

AP: Job outlook in China 'grim' more ›

"At least three people have been killed and 18 more are missing after the collapse of a half-built tunnel in Hangzhou in eastern China." more ›

Since Hong Kong's recent melamine findings in China-produced SELECT eggs, melamine has been found in several other Chinese egg brands. Many questions are now being raised in the Chinese media as to just what's the China FDA's been up to. We overheard on the radio the other day someone asking why food safety problems have always first been identified outside mainland China, and why the Chinese food authority always seems to be caught 'sleeping'. more ›

• Take note, all you kinky bastards out there. Novelty chocolate body spreads manufactured in Zhongshan, Guangdong and sold in sex shops across Britain have been found to contain melamine. In New Zealand, chocolate body pens and spreads have also been taken off the shelves. Edible toys from your local sex store are not a good idea. Make a trip to the organic food store instead.
• In Korea, melamine has been found in processed egg products from China such as duck’s yolk powder, egg power, albumen power and yolk liquid. Authorities have ordered the immediate destruction of 23.2 tons currently held by importers.
• 2 more made-in-China biscuit products manufactured under the Korean brand Lotte have been found to contain melamine in the Philippines.

On Sept 26, in Tianjin at the World Economic Forum, EU Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson drank a glass of milk (click to see video) in front of the media to show his support for the Chinese dairy industry and said:

The Europeans will continue to expect the highest standards, just as Chinese consumers are demanding the same…. But in the meantime I shall continue drinking my own favorite, er, milk, er, product, er, er, which I enjoy and which does not make me nervous.

Wen said he was very moved when he saw in television European Union Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson drinking a cup of Chinese milk on Friday to show his trust in China-made products. “It's because he not only sees the present, but the future as well,” Wen said.

"Over the past few days, Peter Mandelson has been experiencing some kidney pain," a spokesman said. more ›

"Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today said India and China are working on the details of a framework agreement to help resolve the complicated boundary issue between the two countries." more ›

More and more international and Chinese brands are getting embroiled in the tainted milk scandal. Latest news from the Straits Times:

SOUTH Korea's food watchdog said on Tuesday that two more snacks imported from China were contaminated with the toxic chemical melamine, bringing the number of tainted brands discovered locally to six. more ›

AP: Cadbury has recalled 11 types of China-made candy in Hong Kong although it has not been confirmed that melamine has been found in those products. Supermarkets have also been pulling Oreo's, M&M's and Snickers off the shelves after Indonesia found traces of melamine in those products. Will these products be taken down in China next? (Update: Cadbury is pulling its chocolates off shelves on the mainland now)
more ›

From Reuters:

UP TO five per cent of infants in Shanghai could have kidney stones after drinking tainted milk formula, media reported on Friday, as publicity surrounding the scandal was muted by China's manned space launch. more ›

Reuters reports that the use of melamine is "rampant among farmers and feed-ingredient manufacturers". The words of Sun Erwu,a feedmill owner in Hebei province, which is at the centre of the milk powder scandal, are enough to send tingles down our spine, and raise questions over what is happening to the entire food chain in China:

"It is like a chain... If cows are fed with poor feed and produce lower-protein milk, dairy plants will not accept the milk, so many add melamine," Sun told Reuters on the sidelines of a grains conference. more ›

Looks like our earlier warning to not eat or drink anything with dairy content for the time being bears repeating. Singapore has now found traces of melamine in White Rabbit candies, wildly popular throughout Asia. The Straits Times reports:

Singapore's Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA) said samples of White Rabbit-brand Creamy Candy imported from China were contaminated with melamine, an industrial chemical that can cause kidney stones and lead to kidney failure. more ›

Welcome to the latest episode of Chinese Soundbites, a podcast series brought to you by ChinesePod and Shanghaiist. Every week we'll be bringing you topics and words pulled straight from the headlines, in Mandarin Chinese. more ›