China has warned dairy producers that inspectors are on alert for fresh milk tainted with the industrial chemical melamine and another toxic substance extracted from leather scraps.
Both additives  melamine and hydrolyzed leather protein  would make dairy products made with watered-down milk appear to have normal amounts of protein. Infant formula tainted with melamine killed six children in China in 2008 and sickened more than 300,000.
The Ministry of Agriculture said in a undated notice posted to the website of the State Council, China's Cabinet, that authorities will carry out 6,450 random checks on fresh milk this year  underscoring official concerns that dairy producers may still be trying to use illegal and dangerous methods to boost the protein content of their milk.