Beijing is stepping up regulation of dairy producers - infant formula makers will be subject to new licensing and substandard producers shut down, the state product quality agency said.
Zhi Shuping, director of the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine, told a national quality supervision meeting in Beijing yesterday the move would give the mainland's dairy industry a boost by improving its quality, Xinhua reported.
'This year, food safety inspection will intensify and focus on the dairy industry,' Zhi said.
Small dairy producers that cannot ensure their products' quality would be shut down, he said.
The mainland's dairy industry has been battered by a series of milk scandals in recent years, starting with the deaths of at least 13 babies in 2004 after drinking fake formula with low nutritional value.
Dairy products from 22 domestic manufacturers were recalled worldwide in 2008 after melamine was found to have been added to raw milk to make it appear richer in protein. More than 300,000 babies were diagnosed with kidney problems and at least six babies died.