What caused the presence of the potent carcinogen aflatoxin M1 in Mengniu milk? Mengniu stated yesterday that the cause has been identified as the cows consuming moldy feed. The source of this problematic feed has also been identified, but the results are pending release.

　Mengniu's internal investigation has yielded results

　On December 24, the State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) released an announcement on the results of recent random inspections of liquid milk products nationwide. A batch of products from Mengniu Dairy (Meishan) Co., Ltd. was found to have aflatoxin M1 exceeding the standard by 140%.

　Three days after the aflatoxin M1 exceeding standard incident was exposed, Mengniu Dairy responded that the cause of the incident had been identified as the cows consuming moldy feed. However, at the time, they stated that the source of this feed and dairy was temporarily untraceable.

Yesterday, Mengniu Group spokesperson Lu Jianjun told this reporter in an interview that this issue has been investigated, but the results are pending. "Based on expert judgment and Mengniu's internal judgment, the problem is undoubtedly due to moldy feed," Lu Jianjun said yesterday. "Internally, we have a result, but this information hasn't reached me yet."

"This is an isolated incident"

　Lu Jianjun emphasized that this was an isolated incident, caused by improper storage of the feed, and not a widespread phenomenon.

　Lu Jianjun did not describe the composition of Mengniu Meishan's milk source, only stating that Mengniu's overall milk supply consists of 80% from farms and 20% from farmer collection stations.

　Quality inspection department has launched an investigation

According to a report by Chengdu Business Daily, Yuan Qin, deputy director of the Meishan Municipal Quality and Technical Supervision Bureau, said the day before yesterday that a rectification notice had been issued to Mengniu Dairy Meishan branch. Preliminary investigations show that the aflatoxin M1 exceeding standard in a batch of Mengniu pure milk was not due to intentional addition, but a random event. The quality inspection department has launched an investigation and will impose a high fine after the facts have been established.

　Further questions

　1. Is Mengniu's currently sold milk safe?

Mengniu: No problematic milk has entered the market

The above news has caused consumer concerns. Could the Mengniu milk currently on sale also have problems?

In response, Mengniu Group spokesperson Lu Jianjun said yesterday, "I can ensure that no problematic milk has entered the market."

According to Lu Jianjun, all food companies must conduct quality checks on their products after the production process and before the products are put on the market. This quality check determines whether the product can be released, and Mengniu is no exception.

“The problematic products found this time were randomly inspected during the production process at the factory. It's like a car on the production line, with the tires not yet installed, and the SAMR inspectors are checking the car's integrity,” Lu Jianjun said. “This batch of products hadn't reached the end of the production process. Even if the quality inspection department hadn't done it, we could have detected the problem after the entire production process and before the product leaves the factory through the group's quality control department, ensuring that the finished products meet the standards.”

Lu Jianjun said that whether the state conducts inspections has no direct relationship with the appearance and destruction of the problematic products.