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China to negotiate with EU on soy food ban

By Zhu Zhe (China Daily)
Updated: 2008-12-05 08:07

The government Thursday expressed concern over the European Union's ban on Chinese soy products and baking powder because they reportedly contain melamine.

A worker at Hebei Beilande Dairy in Xingtai, Hebei province, arranges boxes of milk products Thursday, two days after the company resumed its supplies. The firm, earlier known as Xingtai Sanlu Dairy, was the largest milk production base of the Sanlu Group, whose baby milk food was the first to be found with high levels of melamine. [Asianewsphoto]

"We hope the problem (the ban) can be solved through dialogue and cooperation. I believe the two sides will negotiate the issue," Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao said at a regular press briefing.

The European Union (EU) has banned imports of baby soy food after "high levels" of melamine were found in soybean meal, according to a statement posted on the website of the Delegation of the European Commission (EC) to China. But the EU has not disclosed how high the level is.

Soybean meal is made from the residue of soy after oil is extracted from it and is often used as feed.

Imports of all other food and feed products containing soy from China will have to be tested and only those with less than 2.5 mg of melamine per kg were allowed into the EU, the statement said.

Last year, the EU imported about 68,000 tons of Chinese soy or related products worth about 34 million euros, the EC said.

The EU has also decided to test all consignments of China-made baking powder after high levels of melamine were found in it. The bans are likely to take effect from the end of this week.

An EU press officer told China Daily from Brussels that the soybean meal was bound for France and baking powder for Germany.

The General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine (AQSIQ), which oversees the quality of exports, said it would monitor the situation closely.

"We have come to know about the bans and will talk with our EU counterparts," an AQSIQ statement said in response to a query from China Daily.

The EU banned imports of all Chinese dairy and related products such as biscuits and chocolates in late September after "high levels" of melamine was found in China-made dairy products, especially baby milk food.

Melamine is an industrial chemical used to make utensils such as plates. Mixed with milk, it can make it appear high in protein but can cause urinary tract ailments, including kidney stones.

On Monday, the Ministry of Health said melamine contamination in baby milk food had caused the death of six infants and left about 294,000 with urinary tract ailments. It said 861 children are still receiving treatment in hospital.

Melamine has also been found in some eggs and feed.

Media reports last month said that melamine had been found in soybean meal made by the Jinhai Cereals & Oils Industry Co, based in Qinhuangdao, Hebei province. But the tainted products were later found to be counterfeit products made by small plants in Gansu province.