The New Zealand government's quality testing company is working with two Chinese food giants to investigate the development of a China New Zealand agribusiness service and a food safety center of excellence in China. The wholly government-owned AsureQuality and PwC New Zealand signed the collaboration agreement with China Mengniu Dairy and COFCO Corporation to work on a dairy-related food safety and farm assurance project, which is expected to grow to include other New Zealand commercial and research entities with expertise in the agriculture sector. AsureQuality CEO Michael Th

By Naomi Tajitsu WELLINGTON (Reuters) - New Zealand's Fonterra, the world's largest dairy exporter, plans to sell its own branded infant milk formula in China by mid-year, playing catch-up with other global diary companies already operating in the booming, high-margin market. New Zealand's biggest company already manufactures milk powder for other companies to sell in China, but has stayed out of the branded baby formula market after it was rocked by a melamine tainting scandal in 2008 which killed at least six children.

A Hong Kong regulation came into force Friday barring people from crossing into mainland China with large quantities of baby formula following chronic shortages which have fuelled anti-Beijing sentiment. Formula is popular with mainland Chinese because of concerns about the safety of food processed in China after a series of scandals, notably in 2008 when six babies died from drinking milk tainted with the chemical melamine.