China’s contaminated milk scandal has prompted shoppers and retailers elsewhere in Asia to embrace more organic food lines.
According to a report on Bloomberg.com, fearful consumers in Hong Kong are turning their backs on food from the mainland in favour of more expensive imports from Australia and the United States. More are also opting for chemically-free organic produce, with one outlet reporting a 50 percent jump in sales since the scandal broke.
More than 50,000 babies have fallen ill, and four have died, after drinking infant formula that had been contaminated with melamine, an industrial chemical commonly used in plastics and fertilisers. It is believed manufacturers used the chemical to give the impression of higher levels of protein, courtesy of its nitrogen content. When consumed in sufficient quantities, melamine can damage internal organs, including the kidneys and liver, with babies particularly vulnerable to its effects.
Within days of the scandal becoming public, it was apparent that baby formula was not the only food affected. Traces of melamine have been found in dairy and other food products. Hong Kong authorities said they had found traces in cookies, crackers, vegetable cereal and milk tablets made in China.
While many products have been pulled from Hong Kong shelves to allay fears, many people are choosing not to buy anything imported from the mainland.
Chu Pui-kwan, who runs The Organic Farm in Yuen Long, told bloomberg.com that while customers were mostly foreigners in the 1990s, more Chinese had embraced organic food in the past few years.
The milk scandal has increased the demand further, although the cost – up to three times as much for fruit and vegetables – remains prohibitive for many shoppers.
In Bangkok, those behind major Thai retailers, Tops and Carrefour, are employing various measures to reassure customers that their food is safe. These include introducing more “quality” lines and ensuring international inspection standards.
Central Food Retail Co, which operates Tops, told the Bangkok Post it was also extending its organic food lines, although the price will set consumers back at least 10 percent more. Although organic food currently only makes up about 3 percent of total sales at Tops, the company expects it to rise to 20 percent in the future.
