Vietnam to monitor milk quality

Hanoi (VNA) - Vietnam will soon restore the supply of safe milk for consumers nationwide, with the quality and prices of products to be controlled strictly, a health official said on October 15.

During the peak of China 's melamine-contaminated milk scandal,
Vietnamese authorities discovered the presence of the toxin in 23 separate
products. Milk containing melamine has been blamed for the deaths of
several babies and causing illness in more than 54,000 others in China ,
sparking global concerns over food products made with Chinese milk or milk
powder.

"Milk production and trade will be monitored strictly by management agencies
from the central to grassroots levels," Deputy Health Minister Cao Minh
Quang said.

Quang added that the Ministry of Health (MoH) has been designated to ensure
all milk products are safe and qualified, while the Ministry of Agriculture
and Rural Development is charged with the task of controlling the sources of
locally-produced milk and its raw ingredients.

The Ministry of Industry and Commerce will monitor the import of milk and
milk materials and the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment will
oversee the destruction of any products found to contain melamine.

Currently, 15 task groups are conducting further inspections at all of the
nation's dairy markets, as well as at dairy producers and processors
throughout the country.

According to the MoH, the 9 th meeting of health ministers from 10 ASEAN
member countries, which took place in Manila , the Philippines , from
October 8-11, agreed to absolutely prohibit the use of melamine, even in
trace amounts, in food products.

The MoH, the World Health Organisation and the Food and Agriculture
Organisation had earlier said in a joint statement that melamine has never
been recognised as an approved substance in food.-Enditem