The government said yesterday it will start systematically testing fresh-milk products for melamine, as most of them are imported from the mainland.

Speaking to the media in a stand-up briefing, Secretary for Food and Health York Chow said authorities are considering a new measure to conduct inspections on fresh-milk products before they are sold in stores.

The fresh milk sold in Hong Kong is actually shipped from the mainland, mainly from Guangdong province, Chow said.

"We hope to continue the inspection to relieve public anxiety in consuming fresh milk," Chow said, adding that previous checks of the fresh milk did not uncover any problems.

The authorities will also continue to test infant milk powder on a regular basis.

Chow said the repeated tests during the past two weeks have proven that the baby products are all safe.

In addition, Chow said the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department will enhance inspections of non-dairy products such as biscuits and soy milk.

In response to the discovery of biscuits tainted with melamine in South Korea, Chow said the government will monitor the case.

"However, if the products do not have sales distribution in Hong Kong, the case will be difficult to handle," he said.

As for the renal-stone examinations provided by 18 designated clinics, Chow said the service is expected to run for another six months.

Yesterday, in the clinics, 1,495 people received initial assessments, while the seven Special Assessment Centres attended to 353.

Following a review of the clinics and assessment centers' initial operations, the Hospital Authority (HA) has decided to set up two more assessment centers at Kwong Wah Hospital and North District Hospital respectively from today, and also to extend the service hours of all assessment centers.

Chow said the authorities need to ensure the right screening procedures for children to get the most accurate diagnosis.

As such, a task force will be formed and led by Chow to tackle the milk contamination. Chow hoped to call for the first meeting as soon as possible.

"We will send staff to the mainland to study the cases there and the most effective treatment," he said.

As of yesterday, the Centre for Health Protection (CHP)'s hotline (2125 1133) had received 5,437 enquiries from the public. Among them, 1,666 claimed that they or their children had consumed milk products confirmed to have been tainted with melamine, while 506 said they had symptoms of renal problems.

Meanwhile, a fifth child has been diagnosed with renal stones after consuming milk products tainted with melamine.

The 10-year-old boy, who lives in Hong Kong and sometimes travels to the mainland, was found to have renal stones in his left kidney when his parents took him for a medical check-up yesterday. The boy had been consuming mainland dairy products on a regular basis.

The CHP said the boy was admitted to Princess Margaret Hospital and was in stable condition.

(HK Edition 09/26/2008 page1)