BEIJING — China will step up monitoring of the raw milk industry this year to ensure safety and quality of the country’s dairy products, the Ministry of Agriculture (MOA) said on Feb 4.

Dairies and vehicles transporting raw milk are subject to monitoring by local authorities and random inspection will be strictly carried out to ensure no illegal substances are added, said the MOA.

The supervision will focus on raw milk produced for infant formula and a source-tracing monitoring system will be established in a bid to guarantee the safety of infant formula.

The credibility of China’s dairy industry was severely damaged in 2008 when milk laced with melamine, a chemical added to milk products to make the protein content seem richer, made nearly 300,000 children ill and killed at least six.

Since 2009, agricultural departments nationwide have paid great attention to supervising the raw milk industry and cracked down upon the illegal addition of substances to raw milk.