Police in northern China have detained 22 people from the network that made and sold the industrial chemical melamine and added it to milk, state media said today.
19 of those detained in Hebei province were managers of pastures, breeding farms and milk-purchasing stations, Xinhua news agency reported.
The detentions came after more than 800 police raided 41 sites in the city of Shijiazhuang, seizing 222.5kg of melamine.
“According to police investigation, melamine was produced in underground plants and then sold to breeding farms and purchasing stations,” Xinhua said.
Shijiazhuang is the headquarters of Sanlu Group.
Formal arrest warrants have been issued for 13 of those detained in the raids, Xinhua said.
China has vowed to bring to justice those responsible for the scandal, which has further tarnished the image of Chinese goods following a series of product safety scandals in recent years.
Melamine is believed to have been added to the milk supplies to give the appearance of higher protein content.