However, their efforts have so far failed to improve consumer confidence. Parents' inclination to buy foreign formula has spread to other products as well, with more parents buying toys and nursing equipment from overseas.

On the other hand, some parents are still choosing to feed their babies with domestic milk products.

"My doctor told me that I can trust domestic formula, as its quality is guaranteed," said Wang Jing, an expectant mother in Beijing.

Industry experts have pointed out that China's dairy industry has been under stricter supervision since the 2008 Sanlu scandal.

Dairy farmers from suburban Shijiazhuang said they have improved the way they feed and manage their cows in order to ensure the quality of their milk.

"We don't use any drugs and samples of our milk are inspected daily," said dairy farmer Feng Jishu.

Yuan Yunsheng, secretary-general of the Hebei Provincial Dairy Association, said the province has improved quality monitoring standards for milk, although he does not believe parents' confidence in domestic brands is likely to change in the short-term.

Kan Jianquan, deputy director of the College of Food Science at Southwest University, said dairy companies and local governments should make joint efforts to regain consumers' confidence.

The government should publish industry standards in a timely manner, Kan said, adding that domestic companies should apply for inspections from authoritative international organizations in order to convince customers that their milk is safe.

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