Taipei  - China has approved Taiwan's request to send a delegation to investigate its tainted milk products and exports to Taiwan, officials said Thursday.

The team of health experts are ready to leave for Beijing on Sunday, they said.

The latest development came as Taiwan's Health Minister Lin Fang-yue resigned to take responsibility over the public outcry over policy reversal by health authorities in dealing with the Chinese milk crisis.

In a news conference in Taipei, Lin said he tendered his resignation to Premier Liu Chao-shiun to take the blame over the Health Ministry's decision to relax the inspection criteria in examining whether local foodstuffs have contained melamine-tainted ingredients imported from China.

"I feel sorry for creating such a misunderstanding and worries because of the different inspection results," he said.

The health authorities Wednesday decided to ban sales of all milk and milk products with ingredients imported from China until after they were tested negative for melamine, a toxic industrial chemical used by a number of Chinese firms in baby milk formula.

The chemical is blamed for the deaths of at least four babies and kidney problems in thousands of infants in China.

Late Wednesday health authorities decided to allow local foodstuffs that contain melamine in a concentrations of no more than 2.5 parts per million (ppm) to pass the inspection test.

Public outcry followed over why Taiwan would permit a concentration of 2.5 ppm of the toxic chemical in its foodstuffs while China allowed no melamine in its food products.

The criticism prompted Lin to resign, and his resignation was accepted by Premier Liu who has been faulted by lawmakers from the ruling Nationalist Party for having "zero crisis management ability."

Liu Thursday acknowledged it is necessary for the Cabinet to straighten up its crisis management ability.

He also called for China to allow Taiwan to send a team of health experts and doctors to investigate the milk crisis on the mainland.

China said it hoped the five-member Taiwan delegation could arrive in China Saturday and hold talks with local experts on food safety issues the next day.

Mainland Affairs Council Chairwoman said the team will leave for China on Sunday.

Taiwan has imported at least 25 tons of milk powder tainted with the chemical melamine made by the Sanlu Group and a large amount of other diary and food products produced by other Chinese companies.

China's tainted milk has caused no illnesses or deaths in Taiwan.

Taiwan has banned the import of Chinese diary and food products and said it would lift the ban when China can ensure the safety of its food exports. (dpa)