Tonight on Sunday ` the poisoned baby formula scandal. Did we get the whole truth? BABY CRIES The Chinese central government does not want this story to go any further. But tonight it does. 300,000 kids with kidney stones ` it's mind-boggling. There's been such a big cover-up. How many got sick? How many died? And the scale of people involved in this. The true extent of the melamine scandal. life and love at 40 below. Best wedding ever. Nine Antarctic winters. The frozen continent as we have never seen it. Whoo-hoo-hoo! Kia ora. I'm Miriama Kamo. It was China's 9/11, and NZ's biggest company, Fonterra, was right at the heart of it. On September 11, 2008, the Chinese people learnt Fonterra's joint venture partner in China, Sanlu, was selling poisoned baby formula. Sunday revealed back then that more babies were killed by the melamine contaminated infant formula than the communist government was prepared to admit. Four years on, Sunday has returned to China to find the cover-up continues. TENSE MUSIC Imagine if every baby born in NZ during the past five years was poisoned, and you begin to understand the size of China's melamine scandal. BABY CRIES 300,000 children with kidney stones. It's mind-boggling. And that's just the official figure. Brendon Bowkett is a Wellington paediatric surgeon. How many deaths do you think there have been? There would have been hundreds. Yeah. The official Chinese line ` only six babies died after being poisoned with the industrial chemical melamine. There's just been such a big cover-up. Anne-Marie Brady should know. She's an expert on Chinese politics. And the scale of people involved in this is phenomenal. So what happened to all those poisoned babies? We went back to China to find out. 5-year-old Lina ` skinny, sickly and undersized. Is she part of the legacy of melamine poisoning? Lina Wang survived, but has ongoing problems. She's tiny for her age, has swollen glands. Her mother, Cai Hong, believes the melamine is to blame. And did you get any compensation? What she was offered is worth about $400 ` less than what she paid for the poisoned milk. And it wasn't enough? < Have you been given any compensation for what happened to your baby? Despite the Chinese government closing the book on the scandal, it didn't take much to find the mother of another dead baby still seeking compensation. Song Meili's daughter, Wang Siyu, died after drinking Sanlu baby formula. But the Chinese courts won't hear her case. So why haven't families been compensated four years after dairy companies, including Fonterra, paid $180 million into a fund for melamine victims? They have received some money, but it is a pittance. The need is huge, and the fund that was set up was never going to be enough for these families. Four years ago, at hospitals all over China, babies were turning up in pain with kidney and urine stones ` the result of drinking formula contaminated with melamine. BABY CRIES The, uh, product forms concretions or stones which can block or infect the kidney. It can be very very painful. In China, there is no maternity leave. After giving birth, young mothers face enormous pressure to return to work. That's why formula is so popular. Sanlu was the product that was mostly sold in the countryside and to the poorer consumers. Now, most of the mothers who would be feeding that product to their kids ` they'd be working in the cities, and they'd leave their babies behind with the grandparents. In 2008, we discovered China's fresh milk supply chain was vulnerable. To boost profits, milk was being watered down at collection stations, and to disguise this, melamine, which is normally used to make plastics and concrete, was also added. Terminals running these collection stations were putting in counterfeit milk to make their own personal gains. And companies all over China were buying that milk. Inflation was going up, and the Chinese government had told producers to keep a lid on prices. So what do you do? Well, if you're a milk producer, water down the milk. Of the 22 Chinese companies implicated, Sanlu baby formula was the worst offender by far. It was only the Sanlu product that had poisonously high levels. Only Sanlu product killed babies. By the time of the Beijing Olympics, Sanlu executives had known for months there was something seriously wrong with their infant formula. People at Sanlu knew what was going on. They were responding to various complaints. The, um, government authorities knew about it as well, because they` there was a crackdown on the gangs who were involved in putting the melamine in the milk. But they were trying to make reports, and they were muzzled. And no one told Fonterra the Sanlu infant formula was poisoned. And that that product was injuring and killing children. I mean, that's the worst possible nightmare for any company to be involved with. I'm sure we can believe they weren't being told. But they should have had a self-protection of a good media company that was combing the internet. In NZ, you'd have a duty of care to the babies. Their health would be absolutely paramount, wouldn't it? First of all, let me be very clear ` we always have a duty of care to the babies first. It was just how we could most effectively do it was different. By August 2008, the scandal could no longer be suppressed. After the break ` is Fonterra doing enough? I think there's a good argument that more compensation is offered. Hello. And how Sunday viewers helped a family in need. ENGINE RATTLES SONIC CRACKLING, ZAPPING Debt comes in all shapes and sizes. SONIC CRACKLING, ZAPPING Sometimes borrowing is a smart thing to do,... SONIC ZAPPING INTENSIFIES ...and sometimes it isn't. SONIC ZAPPING SOARS Shrink your dumb debt. It's all part of being sorted. Don't hide behind your lipstick. Use it to show the world how you feel. And today I feel daring. VOICEOVER: Revlon Super Lustrous Lipstick - mega-moisturising formula in stay-true colours. SOMBRE MUSIC Four years ago, on a rainy night in Xi'an, we met the Tians. They bravely came forward to talk to us about the death of their baby son. And when he died, did you have any idea what had caused those kidney stones? < And was he a healthy baby boy? The family had unknowingly fed their baby son milk powder heavily laced with melamine. < Why did you decide to feed him with powdered milk? The Tians borrowed more than $8000 ` a year's income ` to get their baby the best medical treatment. But they still had no idea what had caused his suffering. Incredibly, doctors recommended they should keep feeding him Sanlu milk formula. < Was baby Jin in lots of pain? One month later, baby Jin died. What also made the situation worse was the Chinese government's refusal to publicise the mass poisoning, even after Fonterra was finally told about the scandal. There was a very strong message from the Chinese that you could not go public. Fonterra asked Wellington to intervene and talk to the most senior food safety people in Beijing and get them to take action on this. And the reason was was because news came out that Reuters were going to do a report on it. News agency Reuters had picked up the story on the internet and was about to go global. < So it wasn't a response Fonterra thought through, 'Gosh, we can't go ahead with this internal product recall any more. We've gotta tell the public.' That's right. It was damage control. Within weeks, 19 Chinese people were before the courts. Sanlu chairwoman Tian Wenhua sentenced to life imprisonment, and two of the worst melamine contaminators sentenced to death. The Tians were one of six families whose babies were acknowledged to have died. Four years on, I'm going back to see how their lives have changed. This is good because they taking us to their home for the first time. Really looking forward to seeing this. After the Sunday story in 2008,... Hello. ...baby Jin's death received widespread media attention in Xi'an. That's about NZ$40,000. Wee and Lee also received more than $5000 donated by Sunday viewers. And the next year, they had another son, Yang Guang, which means 'sunshine'. But they are the lucky ones. Song Meili is still waiting to have her claim heard in court. Have you tried to take your case further with lawyers? But her lawyer says judicial appeals have been shut down by the government. And when parents stood up against the government against the lack of compensation, one of them was sent to jail. The Chinese central government does not want this story to go any further. So they've very successfully, um, kept it out of the Chinese media. So I think that, um` And it means keeping it out of the court system as well. I think, um, quite a number of these kids are still` will still be sick. Quite a number of them will have ongoing problems. Paediatric surgeon Brendon Bowkett believes Fonterra has a moral, if not legal, obligation to continue helping to care for the children poisoned by Sanlu milk. What that would do is show that this company just isn't about profit, but it's about, uh, some compassion, and it's about the realities of recognising what the community faces over there, um, in terms of dealing with these kids. Fonterra lost more than $200 million in the Sanlu debacle. Much of it went to a compensation fund. Fonterra's business in China is still booming. I discovered Chinese supermarkets with whole aisles dedicated to milk powder. And NZ-made baby formula is now so popular in China it's being counterfeited. The Sanlu victims say it's time Fonterra fronted up and helped those cut adrift by the Chinese system. So, Fonterra says it's already made 'a significant financial contribution to the victims' and wants to make an ongoing contribution to the welfare of people in China by making 'a real difference in food quality and safety'. Up next ` the Antarctic as we have never seen it. DRAMATIC MUSIC Welcome back. Spectacularly beautiful. Light shows in the sky, months without sun, and terrifying storms. What's it really like to live at the bottom of the planet in the Antarctic? What is it like for the workers who keep stations like Scott Base running in the coldest place on Earth? Well, one of those workers, technician Anthony Powell, has made a stunning time-lapse film showing us exactly what it's like to spend a year on ice. Here's Peter Cronshaw. HAUNTING MUSIC It's hauntingly beautiful,... We are going to open the door right now. It's a bit like opening up the door to another world. ...and equally terrifying. Ready? (LAUGHS) (YELPS) It's a little bit blowy out there right now. (LAUGHS) The most common question I get is, 'What's it like down there?' And it's` It's never really been answered in film before. Anthony Powell is a telecommunication technician by day and a film-maker by night. It's the middle of winter, and right now, it's the middle of the day. It's the middle of summer, and right now, it's the middle of the night. What makes him different is his passion for time-lapse, the landscape, and the people who call this place home. Once the last plane leaves at the end of summer, that's it. You're stuck here for seven months. But there's no place Anthony would rather be. It just gets under your skin, uh, just experiencing that vastness, that` that pure, pristine air, that complete silence, that untouched wilderness. It's something that you really need to experience in person to get the full depth of it. It's just things that you don't see anywhere else on the planet. Although the camera is on the tripod, you can see the picture is actually quite shaky. LOUD RATTLING Trying to actually put it into words is... really hard to do, so that's one of the big motivations for the film I'm making. LIGHT-HEARTED MUSIC In an industry that can count millions as loose change, this self-taught filmmaker from Taranaki is a proud graduate of the number-8 wire school of technology. Now, I'm thinking this must cost a fortune, this equipment. Now, I'm thinking this must cost a fortune, this equipment. Uh, not really. A total of about,... oh, 300 bucks in parts here? These are scooter wheels? These are scooter wheels? Yeah. It's scooters from K-Mart ` $15 scooters ` so a couple of those, and, uh, they do the trick just fine. HIGH-PITCHED WHIRRING I didn't have a half-million budget to` Basically had to come up with this to build it for myself. All of Anthony's time-lapses are made up of thousands of still images shot over hours, days, weeks, and sometimes months. How many photos have you taken down there on the ice? How many photos have you taken down there on the ice? At least a couple of million. A couple of million? > A couple of million? > Mm-hm. Those millions of photos make up some of the most amazing images ever captured on camera. Uh, there's just nothing like it anywhere else. It can just look incredible, like the entire sky is on fire with pearlescent colours. Anthony's film has been a 10-year labour of love. He spent nine winters and 100 months on the ice. And there by his side, for the most part, has been his wife, Christine. You know, it's just beautiful white expanse of wilderness. And, uh, looking out, uh, across the snow and seeing a billion diamonds looking back at you, you know, the prisms and the colours and` that's the things I see. This couple's passion for the ice, passion for each other, was born in Antarctica. They are one of the few couples to meet and marry on the ice. Best wedding ever. Best wedding ever. Best wedding ever. The wedding was in the chapel at McMurdo Base. Most people dream of getting married in the tropics. Most people dream of getting married in the tropics. (LAUGHS) On the beach. Yeah. Sun. Palms,... > Yeah. Sun. Palms,... > Yeah. It was` Yeah. Sun. Palms,... > Yeah. It was` ...bikini, surf. > ...dark and, you know, no sun, and, uh, totally isolated, and it was beautiful. LIVELY JIG PLAYS, GUESTS CLAP The honeymoon was on the ice shelf in mid-winter. We went out there and spent a couple of days, just freezing cold. (LAUGHS) And loving it, yeah. Watching the auroras. In Antarctica, nature provides the most spectacular entertainment. Have you got a favourite shot? Favourite time-lapse shot? Um,... yeah, probably the big one of the aurora over Scott Base. After dinner, someone said, you know, 'There's auroras happening outside.' So Ants, you know, automatically grabbed his camera, ran outside, you know, didn't even think about, you know, cold or anything ` I think it was minus-40 or something. He was so focused that there wasn't any moving him off the spot. So I ran in. I said, you know, 'He's gonna die if we don't get him some gear.' I just didn't want to leave, cos it was just such a spectacular display. MAJESTIC MUSIC Rarely seen and rarely filmed, Anthony's aurora starred in the BBC's The Frozen Planet. Do you think you'll ever get the ice out of your system? Do you think you'll ever get the ice out of your system? I don't think so. I can't see it ever happening. I can't see it ever happening. (LAUGHS) Not by a long shot. (LAUGHS) No, we're lifers. DRAMATIC MUSIC It is the last outpost of the natural world. And this week, Anthony and Christine got to showcase their vision of Antarctica at Christchurch's Icefest. Very excited to see this. Very excited to see this. Congratulations. Very excited to see this. Congratulations. Thank you. I guess the big motivation was just, um, trying to convey what it was like there, because so many people that go there, um, have such a hard time relating it to the friends and family back home as to what it's like to actually be there for a year. It's a special place, and, you know, we really` everyone needs to know about it because we need to protect it. People talk about saving the planet, and I don't think that's valid at all. We're not saving the planet; the planet will carry on just fine with or without us. What we've gotta save is ourselves from our own stupidity. Oh, that was very well put. The audience feedback Anthony got from that screening at Ice Festival will help shape the final editing of the film before its wider release. Can't wait to see it. So, that's the show for tonight. Do check us out in Facebook ` Sunday TVNZ. Kia pai to wiki. Have a great week. Po marie. Goodnight.