Name-clearing took center stage last week in China's dairy industry, with one local brand - suspected of adding harmful substance into its premium product - declared safe for consumption and another global brand tested melamine-free.

Mengniu Dairy, China's biggest milk producer, heard from health authorities on February 13 that its use of osteoblast milk protein (OMP) in a premium product was harmless.

However, the authorities stressed in an announcement that the use of OMP was illegal because it was not on the country's approved additive list.

The same day, France-based Danone Group's nutrition provider Dumex was cleared of suspicion for adding melamine in its infant formula sold in China.

A statement from the Shanghai quality supervision agency said it had tested 932 batches of dairy products by Dumex since mid-September, and that all the products were found to be melamine-free.

The two cases have attracted national spotlights for days, with accusations and criticisms launched against the two companies widely circulated in the internet. Mengniu's share prices also suffered and was only restored after the announcement came. 

The episode underscored how Chinese are still haunted by last year's melamine scandal, which severely dented public confidence in the local dairy industry's food safety compliance. At least six children died from kidney stones and thousands fell ill after consuming infant formalu laced with the industrial substance last year.

Mengniu - one of the 22 companies tested melamine-positive last year - insisted that the latest case was not a quality-compliance issue.

"The company has been ordered to halt production of milk added with OMP, but won't recall the sold products as it is not a quality problem," said Yang Wenjun, president of Mengniu Dairy Group.

The controversy first surfaced when a government circular - issued by the state quality watchdog ordering the halt of Mengniu's OMP-added milk production - was leaked to the media.

Government health experts held that consumption of Mengniu's OMP-laced milk was harmless to health, after considering that the OMP used was sourced and produced in New Zealand and complied with the country's food safety standard.

Despite the findings, the additive remained illegal in the country.

As for the Dumex case, though the authorities had cleared its name, some families claimed to have babies sickened after consuming Dumex products and insisted on filing complaints against the company.

The families were consulting the Open Constitution Initiative, a legal aid organization in China, which helps victims of the previous melamine scandal to seek for compensation, on the possibilities of filing a lawsuit abroad.