August 15, 2013

New Zealand Prime Minister John Key said on August 13 that he will visit Beijing later this year to apologize for the Fonterra milk botulism scare.

It is unusual for a national leader to go on a trip to deliver an apology for a private company, but Key said that it was an important step in restoring trust in New Zealand's food products after the Fonterra crisis prompted massive recalls of the country's dairy products.

He said he would not travel to Beijing immediately, as his administration is waiting for the results of the inquiry into the Fonterra botulism scare. Fonterra, which is New Zealand's top dairy-product manufacturer, was criticised for releasing information too slowly to customers.

China imported 371,000 tonnes of milk powder from New Zealand in the first half of 2013, accounting for about 83% of China's total milk powder imports.