China orders milk toxin tests

BEIJING:

China's national market regulator instructed infant formula manufacturers on Thursday to conduct tests for the toxin identified in a global product recall, which has been linked to a Chinese biotech company.

Since December, several manufacturers, including Swiss giant Nestle, have issued recalls of infant formula that could be contaminated with cereulide in more than 60 countries.

Cereulide is a toxin produced by some strains of the bacteria Bacillus cereus and can cause nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea.

Beijing has "directed all manufacturers to conduct cereulide testing", the State Administration for Market Regulation said in a statement.

Manufacturers are to be "strict" in accepting raw materials and quality control, it added.

The statement did not mention any specific Chinese companies.

But the recall has heaped scrutiny on Wuhan-headquartered Cabio Biotech, one of the world's largest producers of ARA -- a fatty acid used primarily in baby formula and food products.