The Education Ministry has ordered the recall of tainted milk supplied to schools in four states after 138 school children who drank it fell sick, a report said today.

Students from schools in the northern states of Perlis, Kedah, Pahang and Terengganu were hospitalised last month with diarrhoea and vomiting after consuming the milk, the state news agency Bernama reported.

Deputy Education Minister Hon Choon Kim said Monday the milk from seven suppliers in a school milk programme was found to be contaminated.

"The existing stocks must be returned to the manufacturers to be destroyed, and be replaced with new stocks whose expiry period must be at least two weeks," Hon was quoted as saying.

He did not provide any further details on the contamination.

He said a committee had been set up to monitor milk manufacturers and the conditions in which milk was stored.