After my column on Fonterra's role in the Sanlu scandal last week, I received a phone call from one of their communications team. I hadn't got things wrong, he assured me.
It was just a call to explain the decision-making processes that went on during that awful time
when the company realised that they were inadvertently selling poisoned milk powder.
In response to my disbelief that Andrew Ferrier had no idea what the consequences were of melamine being placed in food, he said that although the company knew of dog food being tainted with the chemical, it had never heard of melamine being put into human food.
I still find that hard to believe. Several people I'd spoken to said it was an open secret in China that some foods were more toxic than others and there'd been many articles warning of the potential for poisoning.
As to why the board members hadn't alerted the western media to the poisoned milk when officials were slow to act, he said they had to work with the Chinese authorities to ensure that all plants that had been sabotaged were shut, not just theirs.
He said if they went public, they ran the risk of the Chinese authorities being embarrassed and refusing to act. That would enable the poisoners to disappear for a while and then re-emerge. This way all tainted products were recalled and the culprits brought before the courts.
At no stage was it ever about keeping quiet in a bid to save the company. He said all those involved have to live with their decision and he said they believe they made the right call.
So in the spirit of fair play, and since I'm sure this isn't the last we'll hear of Sanlu, I've passed that conversation on to you.
* www.kerrewoodham.com
