A former dairy boss who could face the death penalty in China's tainted milk scandal testified yesterday that she began investigating product quality issues in May but did not notify authorities until August, a state news agency said.

Tian Wenhua, former board chairwoman and general manager of Sanlu Group Co., pleaded guilty to charges of producing and selling fake or substandard products, the Xinhua News Agency said. Three other executives faced similar charges after being linked to infant formula contaminated with the industrial chemical melamine.

They could be executed if convicted, the China Daily newspaper reported.

Melamine, commonly used to make plastics and fertilizer, has been blamed for the

deaths of at least six children and sickening nearly 300,000 others.

Authorities say milk suppliers mixed the nitrogen-rich powder into raw milk to fool quality tests for protein. When ingested in large amounts, melamine can cause kidney stones and kidney failure.

The high-profile defendants and the release of details in a 1.1 billion yuan ($160 million) compensation plan signal that authorities hope to end what was widely seen as a national disgrace, highlighting widespread food safety problems and corporate and official malfeasance.

In a move underscoring public concerns, China's top product quality watchdog said it was testing tableware made of melamine after reports that the products could be toxic when heated, Xinhua said late Tuesday. The utensils were sold in domestic supermar-

kets and wholesale markets, the report said, citing the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine.

In the trials that began yesterday, Tian and her colleagues appeared before a three-judge panel after being escorted into the courtroom by police. Defendant Wang Yuliang, a former deputy general manager at Sanlu. used a wheelchair because he lost use of his legs during a suicide attempt, Xinhua said.

Tian told the court she learned of consumer complaints about problematic milk in mid-May, and led a team set up to handle the case, Xinhua said. But she also said she did not submit a written report on the situation to the government in Shijiazhuang, the northern Chinese city where Sanlu is based, until Aug. 2.