The Tuesday launching of the State Council Food Safety Committee to be headed by Vice-Premier Li Keqiang was stamped with the central government's special attention to food safety. It also sends the message that plenty of retooling is needed for the food safety monitoring system.

The re-emergence of melamine-contaminated dairy products should serve as a reminder that the bankruptcy of Sanlu, a well-known dairy product company, and the execution of the culprit and imprisonment of major offenders in the 2008 scandal have not cleaned up the food industry.

The milk powder containing melamine should have been destroyed. The fact that it wasn't and was re-used by dairy product manufacturers shows how scrupulous these manufacturers are in pursuing a profit without any concern for the health of consumers. It also suggests that the food safety monitoring system at various levels does not work.