China's Ministry of Health Monday issued a draft regulation prohibiting the use of edible flavorings in certain foodstuffs such as infant formula and pure dairy products.

The draft, published on the ministry's website for public opinions, is aimed at regulating the use of artificial flavorings in food.

Food such as pure milk, single cream, vegetable and animal fat, baby formula and bottled water will not be allowed to add flavoring agents to their ingredients, it said.

The regulation also required manufacturers to identify flavorings on food labels if they were added in the products, in order not to mislead consumers.

Food safety has long been a concern for Chinese consumers, as several scandal and corruption cases linking food safety occurred in recent years.

The 2008 milk scandal, in which milk laced with melamine led to the death of at least six infants and sickened 300,000 others, resulted in the collapse of the Sanlu dairy group, based in northern Hebei Province.

(Xinhua News Agency July 27, 2010)