The Melamine Milk Crisis in China - Essay Example

The Melamine Milk Crisis in China In the history of recent food safety incidents, none can be considered to be as disturbing as the Melamine Milk Crisis that gripped China and the world in 2008. Recalls for China made formulas and liquid milk were done all over the world. People were afraid to drink any kind of milk for a time because of the incident which will go down in the annals of food history as one of the biggest food contamination disasters of the 21st century. The scandal that rocked the dairy world stemmed from the Sanlu Group of China using milk that came from a supplier who laced his milk with melamine, a chemical that is used in the creation of plastics and laminates.

In the case of milk products, melamine helped to extend the shelf life of the product. Sanlu stood by the cleanliness of their product even as the number of babies being admitted to the hospital with kidney problems, all of whom drank their milk products, continued to increase. Even after the company became aware of the melamine content in their milk, they continued to use the supplier and simply tried to sweep the situation under the rug. But Sanlu's foreign partner, the New Zealand company Fonterra, did an independent test on the Sanlu milk product and discovered that it was laced with melamine.

After informing Sanlu about the results of the test, the company still kept quiet because China was then hosting the Olympics and the country did not need a scandal to rock the boat at that time. Eventually, Fonterra informed the New Zealand embassy in China who in turn, informed the Chinese government of the discovery. Finally, the company admitted to its guilt in selling the melamine raised product. A China wide recall for the milk products was implemented for all milk manufactured after 2006, the company even went on to accept returns of milk products that were dated before then just to give the consumer peace of mind.

But the actions of Sanlu were too late. Fonterra ended their partnership with Sanlu and within 4 months of the scandal breaking, Sanlu filed for bankruptcy. China's Melamine Milk Crisis created a crisis of confidence with milk products coming out of China. The scandal was so far reaching that the World Health Organization declared that it was the largest safety food issue the organization had to deal with in years. With 54000 children in China affected by the melamine tainted milk, 12000 were hospitalized and at least 4 infants died from the contamination (“China's Melamine Crisis Creates Crisis of Confidence”).

As far as the participation of Fonterra in the crisis, they could have done more to prevent or stop the crisis from escalating by putting pressure on the Sanlu group to stop using melamine tainted milk. The best pressure that they could have applied was to pull out of the partnership the minute they became aware of the tainting and then going public with the results of their test. Rather than helping to silence the issue by allowing the Chinese government to sit on their report until after the Olympics.

Many more children could have been saved had they done that. Fonterra as the partner of the Sanlu group was also responsible for the quality of their milk products. It was therefore their duty to make sure that they had their own person within the Sanlu group who would test the milk products to the New Zealand standards of excellence. Only after the supplier passes both tests can they be allowed to sell their milk products to the Chinese public and the world. The slightest doubt in the quality of the contracted products should have had them canceling the supplier contract immediately.

If I were the Chief Ethics Officer for Fonterra, I guess I would rebuild the relationship with the clients of the company by first and foremost, displaying transparency in my knowledge of the scandal. Then, I would make a big deal out of the announcement that Fonterra would no longer be working with the Sanlu group due to its tainted image. I would also assure the people of the quality of our products by inviting them to witness melamine testing procedures at the Fonterra factory. By opening up our manufacturing and delivery process for milk to the people, not only will their trust in the company be rebuilt, but the public would be completely assured with regards to the product quality of Fonterra.

Sources N.A. (2009). China's melamine milk crisis creates crisis of confidence. voanews.com. voanews.com. Retrieved from http://www.voanews.com/content/a-13-2008-09- 26-voa45/403825.html