BOCOG, Yili Say Olympic Milk Safe

Yili yogurt and other dairy products were served in cafeterias used by the Olympic and Paralympic families. (ATR)(ATR) Dairy products served to athletes and media during the Beijing Olympics are said to be safe from contamination, despite sponsor-supplier Yili’s link to the huge scandal involving melamine-tainted dairy products in China.

"Chinese inspectors announced on September 17 that melamine was not found in dairy products served for the Beijing Olympics and Paralympics," BOCOG spokesman Sun Weide tells ATR.

"During the Beijing Olympics and Paralympics, we implemented strict measures to ensure food safety. For instance, we set up a mechanism to monitor food quality from the farm to the dining table," he says.

The International Olympic Committee has received the same assurances from BOCOG.

A Yili statement from Sept. 17 says that Olympic dairy products were safe.

Four children are reported dead and more than 100 seriously ill in China after consuming infant formula containing traces of melamine – a toxic ingredient in plastics. Inner Mongolia Yili Industrial Group Co., Beijing 2008’s official dairy supplier, is one of several companies whose products contributed to kidney stones and other ailments afflicting 53,000 children.

As early as January 2007, city officials promised to step up inspections of Beijing's overall food supply ahead of the Games in the wake of several food safety scares. In November of that year, BOCOG conducted a media tour of two Beijing slaughterhouses to demonstrate that the city's regular food supply was adequate for Olympians. Milk being packaged at a Yili factory. (Getty Images)

Just before the Olympic began, a Yili boss said the company’s Games products are special.

"The Games are like a magic cube -- only the few lucky ones can benefit," said Yili Group president Pan Gang.

"From production management to quality control, we have bolstered our overall capacity to stand the test."

Cover-up Admitted

China's State Council – its highest executive body – blames city-level officials for a cover-up beginning in early August.

Bosses in the city of Shijiazhuang knew of the contamination, according to a new State Council investigation, but failed to report to Beijing. The city Communist Party chief has been dismissed.

The government halted sales of powdered infant formula from Yili and other companies only on Sept. 16, the day before the Paralympics closing ceremony.

But as early as July 16, health officials in China's northwest Gansu Province linked milk from another tainted dairy, Sanlu, to kidney stones in infants, according to a state media report. New Zealand company Fonterra, 43 percent owner of Sanlu, admits it knew about the link as of Aug. 2.

Yili ice cream was sold at Beijing 2008 venues. Its milk and yogurt were supplied at the International Broadcast Centre, Main Press Centre, and cafeterias at media housing and in the Olympic villages. Yili’s main celebrity endorser was Athens 2004 gold medal hurdler Liu Xiang.

No U.S. athletes or personnel have complained of sickness.

One of BOCOG's criteria for domestic partners was top-notch products, reliability, and a good reputation and social image.

The contamination is not Yili’s first trouble. In late 2004, authorities arrested the company’s chairman, Athens Olympics hurdle champion Liu Xiang appears in a Yili ad two years before the Games. (Getty Images)chief financial officer and securities representative during an embezzlement investigation.

The chairwoman of Sanlu, the dairy associated with the most offences, has been detained by police according to state media reports. So have some 18 milk dealers, accused of using nitrogen-rich melamine to mask low-quality or watered-down milk supplied to dairies. The head of the national General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine has resigned.

In a joint statement, Unicef and the World Health Organization condemned people who would deliberately poison food meant for infants, calling the action "particularly deplorable". But the two child health groups say they are confident that China is taking swift and firm actions to investigate the contamination.

The European Union, India, France, Thailand, Vietnam and other countries have restricted distribution of Chinese dairy products since the scandal broke.

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabo told Xinhua news agency that "The government will put more efforts into food security, taking the incident as a warning” and vowed to punish those responsible.

On July 10 2007, China executed the former head of the country's food and drug administration for corruption. Zheng Xiaoyu was found guilty of accepting bribes to approve drugs that had not undergone necessary testing.

Written by Ed Hula, Maggie Lee and Bob Mackin

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