China tightens supervision over dairy products

China's dairy industry has seen several serious scandals that have created widespread public concern over the safety and quality of its products. In response, authorities have now launched a stricter supervision process for dairy goods.

Finally, action is being taken to regulate the dairy market in China. The country's Food and Drug Administration, together with 8 other government departments, announced on Thursday the adoption of a list of measures aimed at tightening dairy product supervision.

Teng Jiacai, Deputy Head, State Food & Drug Administration, said, "This year, all dairy product producers are due to have their licenses expire. We will use this chance to carry out a strict assessment of manufacturers, and eliminate those that fail to meet the national standards."

The move is in response to the series of scandals in China's dairy market over the past few years. The most recent involved the milk powder brand "New Bay Bay", which claimed to be imported from New Zealand. It later proved to be a con.

Ding Zongyi, Baby Formula Expert, said, "Baby formula is the only source for babies to get nutrition. Now, the government is supervising milk products at the same standard as drugs. This is a huge improvement."

To regulate the market, the government will also require all foreign dairy producers to be verified and registered in China. All imported dairy products will have to be sold in their original packaging. And retailers will no longer be allowed to divide imported products into smaller packaging.

"Good news!"

"Hopefully there will be no fake foreign brands."

And to further control product quality, the government also hopes to cut the number of domestic dairy producers, from over 200 to around 50, by suspending those unqualified producers, within the next two years.