BEIJING -- United Nations officials called for an overhaul of China's food-safety system, saying the country's current "disjointed" approach has contributed to the widespread adulteration of milk that sickened tens of thousands of children.
China's reliance on a welter of agencies to enforce food-safety rules also delayed the official response to the crisis, first made public by the central government in early September, weeks after local authorities had been alerted to the problem.