China turns to fixing system as toxic milk eases

BEIJING (Reuters) - China's health minister urged officials to focus on fixing the problem-ridden food safety system now the flood of Chinese children hospitalized for toxic milk poisoning has eased.

Health Minister Chen Zhu said that as of Wednesday there were 2,390 children still in hospital after suffering kidney stones and painful complications from drinking infant formula adulterated with the industrial compound melamine.

"Now we've gone past the peak in infant checks and diagnoses," he told officials on Thursday, the official Xinhua news agency reported.

At the peak in late September, up to 22,000 infants were in hospital on any one day after being found sick from melamine, which was used to disguise sub-standard or diluted milk, Chen said. On Wednesday, 90 more children were hospitalized because of the toxin, he said.

Four children have died from the tainted formula.

But with China battling a fresh melamine scare, now in eggs, Chen urged officials to break down bureaucratic barriers that have hindered the government's handling of this and health scandals last year involving toys, toothpaste and other items.

"Improve the food safety general coordination mechanism as quickly as possible," he told the video conference of health officials. "Coordinate and cooperate to investigate and punish major incidents."

The World Health Organization's food safety chief, Jorgen Schlundt, last week called China's food-safety system "disjointed" and said poor communications between ministries and agencies may have prolonged the outbreak of melamine poisoning.

China has withdrawn 8,312 metric tonnes of "unqualified" milk products in the wake of the scandal, Xinhua reported.

But melamine is now scaring consumers of Chinese mainland-raised eggs tainted through chicken feed. The compound has been detected in eggs sold in Hong Kong and South Korea.

No illnesses have been attributed to the tainted eggs. But the scare has come as another reminder of the widespread use of melamine throughout China's food production.

Tests have also revealed it in a variety of Chinese-made products from milk and chocolate bars to yoghurt exported around the world. And last year, melamine was found in China-made pet food ingredients that killed pets in the United States.

The overseas edition of the People's Daily, the official newspaper of China's ruling Communist Party, said the scare had exposed long-standing failings in food-safety regulation.

"The right to safe food and appropriate nutrition is every citizen's right, but one after another food-safety incident is challenging this right," it said in a commentary.

"For this reason, food safety has become a national topic."

(Reporting by Chris Buckley; Editing by Nick Macfie)