The Ministry of Health has publicly criticised local authorities for trying to cover up an outbreak of food poisoning in Haicheng, Liaoning province, Beijing Times said. Three children died and more than 1,000 fell ill after drinking poisoned soy milk served in eight primary schools in the city. The eyes, noses and mouths of children who drank the milk turned black and blue one or two days after drinking the milk, and one parent claimed that several children had gone blind.
The authorities decided to close the soy milk factory shortly after the incident but imposed a ban on reporting the story until it was broken by the national media.