When a child is born in China, anxious new parents often prize one gift above all others: imported formula baby milk, usually hand-carried from overseas to ensure it's the real thing.

Fearful of the dangerous levels of hormones and chemicals sometimes found in Chinese baby formula, parents in mainland China often go to great lengths to secure foreign brands.

"My child only drank formula that was posted from Japan by my cousin who was studying there," explains Liu Fang in Beijing, the mother of a three-year-old boy.

"When the Japanese nuclear power plant leaked, my son drank American formula which was mailed from the US."

Long-term breastfeeding is rare among Chinese mothers, who often doubt the quality of their breast milk.

Those who can afford it choose to buy imported formula over Chinese brands.