In a recent incident in Chengde City, Hebei Province, a buyer purchased a batch of potatoes for 700 RMB per ton only to discover that there was more soil than potatoes in the shipment. The news quickly made its way to the top of the Baidu trending searches on November 11th.
The buyer from Chengde uploaded a video titled “Buyer Finds More Soil Than Potatoes in Purchased Batch” to social media. According to the buyer, on November 8th, he bought a batch of potatoes at the price of 700 RMB per ton, paid the seller on the spot, but upon receiving the potatoes, he was dumbfounded to find an excess of soil. In the video, the buyer jokingly exclaimed, “There’s more soil than potatoes!”
Despite the unexpected discovery, the buyer mentioned that he did not pursue any action against the seller, who reportedly promised to make up for it in future transactions.
However, the release of this video sparked discussions among netizens regarding the integrity of businesses. Many netizens expressed understanding towards the buyer’s lenient response but emphasized that honesty and credibility are essential qualities for sellers.
Others pointed out that for sustainable business operations, integrity is key. While taking shortcuts may seem advantageous momentarily, in the long run, it can result in the loss of customer trust and reputation. In this era of rapid information dissemination, both positive and negative news spreads quickly. Once your reputation is tarnished, it’s challenging to recover within the industry.
Some netizens believe that whether in personal conduct or business dealings, integrity is fundamental. “Yu Lihong Cef” commented, “Even if there’s more soil in the potatoes, integrity should not be lacking! Let’s hope the market returns to operating with integrity soon.”
Furthermore, netizens asserted that if a seller intentionally passes off soil as potatoes, it constitutes fraud and should be subject to legal sanctions.