During talks with New Zealand Foreign Affairs Minister Murray McCully in Beijing on August 22, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi urged New Zealand to properly resolve Fonterra's botulism contamination crisis.

McCully said that Fonterra had let the country down over the botulism scare, and expressed regret towards parents who were affected by the crisis.

"What I would say to the parents or anyone who has been concerned about this matter is that obviously the New Zealand government strongly regrets the disquiet that has been caused, the uncertainty that has been created around some of the food commodities that have been exported here," he said.

Fonterra's products have been recalled globally over concerns about botulism contamination. The scare has tainted the New Zealand food industry's clean image and threatens a dairy sector that makes up for 25% of the country's exports.

China's infant milk powder market is worth about NZ$3 billion (US$2.35 billion) a year to New Zealand.