The Lombardi Law Firm Blog

Food Safety: Melamine sentencing verdicts does not add up to justice

Who speaks for the mothers and fathers with infants in renal failure?

Who shouts for justice for those same parents of the children who died from the melamine contamination of babies’ milk?

Which government officials in China will be punished? Charged with crimes? Fired? Forced to resign? Who took bribes?

There is no justice in China.

 Tian Wenhua, the former head of Sanlu Dairy, now serving a “life sentence” in prison for the melamine contamination crimes that both killed and permanently maimed infants in China now wants to blame her bosses at Fonterra. She’s pointing to the existence of a document, a document confirmed to exist, but the contents of which are suspect for what she claims it states. Instead of pointing the finger away from China’s mainland, how about pointing the accusatory finger towards mainland China; and especially the CCP officials who must have known of the contamination and chose to look the other way.

Who did Sanlu pay bribes to?

"Tian said during her trial that she made the decision not to halt production of the tainted products because a board member, designated by New Zealand dairy product giant Fonterra that partly owned Sanlu Group, presented her a document saying a maximum of 20mg of melamine was allowed in every kg of milk in the European Union," Xinhua said. "She said she had trusted the document at that time."

Mr Ferrier told the Herald a Fonterra representative had given Tian the document soon after the board was advised of the contamination on August 2.

Melamine in milk as a contaminant has been in the news and banned at least since before May 2007. Complaints about Sanlu’s milk started surfacing in December 2007. Sanlu sold over 800 tons of tainted milk after Sanlu officials clearly knew of the contamination. So pointing to a document that you were provided in August 2008 is disingenuous at best. Its mere subterfuge and an unnecessary distraction, which at this time we don’t need to hear. Those in the dairy industry knew this practice was unacceptable; you just thought you could get away with it.

Chinese Melamine Tainted Milk Scandal: Senior Executive Sentenced - CNN

U.S. Company Used Melamine in Feed

Humans Unlikely to Be Harmed

“By Rick Weiss

Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, May 31, 2007; Page A03

An Ohio company has long been adding the industrial toxin melamine to animal feed ingredients, and those feeds have been eaten by livestock and fish meant for human consumption, officials with the Food and Drug Administration announced yesterday.

The company used the chemical as a binding agent to hold feed granules in pellet form, in contrast to the recent pet food scandal, which involved imported ingredients that were spiked with melamine to provide a false measure of protein content, officials said.

But as with the pet food scandal, they said, the levels of melamine involved appear to be too low to harm humans who may have eaten animals that consumed the tainted feed.

The company, Tembec BTLSR of Toledo, sold the melamine-laden ingredients to Uniscope of Johnstown, Colo., which used them to make three finished food products -- one for cattle, sheep and goats, and two for fish and shrimp.

The contamination came to the FDA's attention on May 18 after Uniscope officials tested for melamine in the feed components they were buying -- something the FDA has been encouraging food producers to do.

The FDA began an investigation the next working day, officials said, and after about 10 days decided how to proceed.

Officials said that Tembec initiated a formal recall of its products yesterday and that the company has stopped adding the chemical.

It remains unclear why Tembec did not stop using melamine months ago, given the intense publicity generated by the recent pet food scandal, during which officials repeatedly made it clear that melamine is not an approved additive for human or animal food.”

So let us get back to the public trial on this issue, you know the one the Chinese Communist Party is so fearful to allow.

Counselor: My question remains, which government officials did Sanlu pay bribes to?

Tian Wenhua: ____________________ (silence)

Counselor: Your honor I would ask that the witness be instructed to answer.

Judge: The witness is instructed to answer the question.

Tian Wenhua: ___________________ (silence)

Counselor: How many dead infants was an acceptable level of casualties to those involved?

Counselor: How many infants with renal failure was an acceptable number?

Counselor: Do you have any grandchildren Ms. Wenhua? Where did you purchase their infant formula? Did any of them suffer renal failure or death?

Counselor: Your honor the next witnesses will be CCP officials, especially those with infant sons, daughter and grandchildren. You know who you are, your children and grandchildren don’t have renal failure or disease from drinking melamine laced infant formula.

Who speaks for the mothers and fathers with infants in renal failure?

Who shouts for justice for those same parents of the children who died from the melamine contamination of babies’ milk?

Which government officials in China will be punished? Charged with crimes? Fired? Forced to resign? Who took bribes?

There is no justice in China.