Chinese dairies to compensate tainted milk victims' families

The four - who went on trial Monday - face charges of endangering public safety for allegedly producing 200 tons of a mixture of melamine and malt dextrin, a food additive made from starch, that they marketed to milk producers, according to state media reports.

Between November 2007 and August 2008, they sold 110 tons to milk producers - including Sanlu Group Co., the dairy at the heart of the scandal - for a total of 1.23 million yuan ($180,000), the reports said.

Xinhua said five others who went on trial Monday are charged with producing and selling toxic food, but did not give other details.

Another two suspects, brothers Geng Jinping and Geng Jinzhu, went on trial on Tuesday on the same toxic food charge, according to state broadcaster CCTV.

The two, arrested in September soon after the scandal broke, are accused of adding 957 pounds (434 kilograms) of melamine-based additive to 1,000 tons (900,000 kilograms) of raw milk that they then sold to major diaries, including Sanlu, CCTV said.

The discovery of melamine in dairy exports such as chocolate and yogurt triggered a slew of product recalls overseas.

The first trials in the case began on Friday for six men, also charged with making and selling melamine.

Trials were being held in the northern city of Shijiazhuang, where Sanlu is headquartered, along with three other cities in surrounding Hebei province.

Sanlu's chairwoman and general manager, Tian Wenhua, is scheduled to go before a Shijiazhuang court Wednesday, charged with producing and selling shoddy products.

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