【英语中国】中国卫生部：性早熟与奶粉无关

China's Health Ministry ruled out milk powder as a cause in the apparent early onset of puberty in three infant girls, saying the product they ingested is safe.

The ministry said that clinical tests of milk powder from Qingdao-based Synutra International Inc. revealed acceptable levels of hormones and didn't cause the girls' premature development, the state-controlled Xinhua News Agency said Sunday. The determination marks an expression of confidence in Nasdaq-traded Synutra, as well as in its foreign suppliers of milk powder, including New Zealand's Fonterra Cooperative Group Ltd.

Unusual allegations in recent weeks from parents of the three girls in Hubei province that milk powder from Synutra caused their infants to grow breasts had turned into China's latest food scare.

In an interview Sunday, Synutra President Zhang Weiguo said of the ministry's finding that 'It's a vindication of what we always believed. We felt sincerely there's no evidence to support these claims.'

He said Synutra doesn't consider the matter closed and that it intends to examine the origin of the allegations and whether they were used to affect the company's stock price. Since Aug. 6, Synutra's stock has lost around 30% of its value.

While scientists immediately said that other factors might explain the phenomenon, the allegations gained traction among Chinese consumers who have questioned the nation's milk supply since a 2008 scandal in which the industrial chemical melamine was found in dairy products nationwide.

Synutra milk products are sold primarily in China. But the case took on an international dimension as Synutra said it buys key ingredients overseas, including milk powder from New Zealand's Fonterra and from France's Euroserum. New Zealand law prohibits use of growth hormones in milking cows, and Fonterra said it is confident in the quality of its products. Euroserum didn't respond to a request to comment.

Some Synutra ingredients are sourced in China.

中国卫生部排除了奶粉可能是引起三名女婴出现性早熟症状的原因，称她们食用的产品是安全的。

Xinhua/Zuma Press超市货架所见圣元奶粉。据新华社周日报导，卫生部说，对圣元国际(Synutra International Inc.)所产奶粉进行的临床检测发现激素水平没有异常，它不是引起女婴出现性早熟体征的原因。这一结论表达了对圣元及其包括新西兰恒天然(Fonterra Cooperative Group Ltd.)在内的外国奶粉供应商的信心。圣元总部设在青岛，在纳斯达克上市。

最近几周，湖北省三名女婴的家长指责圣元奶粉使他们的孩子出现乳房发育的症状，这些异乎寻常的事件在中国引起了新一波食品安全恐慌。

圣元国际高管张卫国周日接受采访时说，卫生部的结论证实了我们一直所相信的东西，我们真心相信这些指控没有依据。

他说，圣元并不认为事情已经结束，公司希望对这些指控的源头展开调查，看看它们是否被用来影响公司股价。自8月6日以来，圣元股价已下跌30%左右。

虽然科学家们马上指出其他因素也可能导致早熟，但上述指控还是在中国消费者中间产生了影响，他们在2008年中国乳业爆出三聚氰胺丑闻后一直对国内的牛奶抱有怀疑态度。

圣元的乳制品大多在中国销售。但这起事件的范围却延伸到了国外，因为圣元说它的关键原料是从海外进口的，包括从新西兰恒天然和法国的Euroserum进口奶粉。新西兰法律禁止在喂养奶牛的过程中使用生长激素，恒天然称它对其产品质量有信心。Euroserum没有回应置评要求。

圣元的部分原料来自中国。