The spelling of the word "Sanlu" is an example of how Mandarin Chinese is transliterated into English. In IPA phonetic transcription, "Sanlu" would be written as /san lu/, where the first syllable "san" has a rising tone (represented by the acute accent over the "a"), and the second syllable "lu" has a falling-rising tone (represented by the circumflex accent over the "u"). This combination of tones gives the word its distinctive sound and meaning, which refers to the brand name of a now-infamous Chinese dairy company.
Sanlu is a Chinese dairy company that was founded in 1956 as the Shijiazhuang Dairy Factory. It became highly recognized for its production of dairy products, especially milk powder, in China. The name "Sanlu" literally translates to "Three Deer" in Chinese, with "san" meaning three and "lu" meaning deer.
In recent years, however, Sanlu gained international attention for a major controversy involving melamine contamination in its products. In 2008, it was revealed that Sanlu's infant formula had been adulterated with melamine, an industrial chemical. This contamination led to a widespread public health crisis in China, affecting thousands of infants and causing six fatalities. The scandal not only tarnished the reputation of the Sanlu brand but also revealed serious systemic issues in China's food safety regulations and supervision.
Following the scandal, Sanlu faced bankruptcy as it struggled to regain consumer trust and company credibility. Consequently, it was ordered to halt production, and its assets were ultimately sold to other domestic dairy companies. The incident sparked public outrage, resulting in tighter food safety regulations and more stringent monitoring of the dairy industry in China.
The name "Sanlu" has now become synonymous with the tainted milk scandal, representing a cautionary tale about the importance of food safety and strict regulatory oversight in the dairy industry.