July 24, 2012

China's Ava dairy closes after toxic feed discovery

China-based dairy company, Ava Dairy, has been ordered to suspend operations after a carcinogen, caused by mildewed cattle feed, was found in its baby formula products, according to Chinese officials

Excessive amounts of aflatoxin were detected in samples of five batches of formula products produced by the firm between July and December of 2011, the Guangzhou Industrial and Commercial Administrative Bureau announced over the weekend.

The total amount of the five tainted batches amounts to 31 tonnes and most of them are sold in Hunan and Guangdong provinces. The Changsha Food Safety Commission ordered the firm to recall all the problematic formula, which will be destroyed to keep it from the market.

Meanwhile, the Changsha quality supervision authorities have sealed the inventory of 55,100 bags of products produced by the firm recently to launch an examination on them to find out whether they contain the toxin.

Police have started to look into the case and those responsible will be investigated for criminal responsibility.

Aflatoxin is produced by a fungus that grows on grains and can appear in milk of animals that eat affected grains. High levels of aflatoxin have led to cancer in animal tests.

Aflatoxin has been found in milk from China's biggest dairy firm, Mengniu, and another company, Changfu.