As the year 2024 comes to a close, discussions on food safety have taken the internet by storm in mainland China. Apart from exposing various ways the food industry harms the public using technology, some citizens have raised banners calling for authorities to “strictly inspect food safety.” Analysts believe that the official announcement by the Chinese Communist Party claiming a “99.2% pass rate in food safety inspections” is not believed by the public; it is seen as a wishful move by the CCP to boost consumption.
On some social media platforms in mainland China, there has been a recent surge in discussions and calls for attention to food safety by the public.
On December 28, a netizen from Hunan named “Orange Brother on Food Safety” displayed a banner saying, “I personally recommend strict inspection of food safety, with responsibility heavier than Mount Tai.”
On the same day, a female netizen from Guangdong named “Fu Gui Ping An” took to the streets with a banner calling for strict checks on ingredient lists and food safety, emphasizing that food safety is more critical than Mount Tai.
She expressed that even if one person supports her, waking up just one person makes a difference.
On December 26, a netizen named Mary from Shanghai posted a video showing a female official from a community food center holding a banner with the message “Food safety is everyone’s responsibility, food safety is more important than Mount Tai, food safety is urgent.”
In the video narration, she added, “Food is paramount to the people, food safety is urgent; starting from you and me for the sake of monitoring the future generations, let’s improve food safety.”
On December 25, a blogger from Zhejiang and the founder of the Private Food Safety Alliance, “Brother Xiao Liang,” displayed a banner on the street saying, “I personally recommend strict inspection of food safety, refuse to introduce pre-made meals into campuses.”
On December 17, a snack industry operator from Hunan, “La Lan Ge,” held a banner with the message “Call for penalties: Death penalty for endangering food safety, let’s start with food safety ourselves.” Alongside, the text read, “Food safety is greater than the sky; I speak up for food safety.”
Netizens expressed support and admiration, saying, “Support!””Chinese should not harm fellow Chinese.””Authorities should pay attention, as this is a top priority for people’s livelihood.””Support, the situation is becoming more and more intolerable, toying with people’s health, even destroying the next generation on their path to growth. Without health, how can we speak of the future or serving the motherland?”
A netizen from Zhejiang named “GIA Financial Forum” made a video on December 11 stating, “Central leadership, hello! If food safety is not given high priority, if it remains only a superficial issue without concrete actions, then we are our own worst enemies without needing external threats. ”
A netizen from Guangdong named “Xing Yu” commented, “For the health of over a billion people, for the future of our children, food safety issues need to be strictly legislated, with well-organized experts, professionals, and teams conducting inspections nationwide in the long run, emphasizing publicity. This should not be handled as in the past, merely with fines and ignoring the problem later!”
Some netizens questioned the indifference of the Chinese authorities to public calls, saying, “I have a suspicion that the entire internet is calling for food safety issues, but why is no one brave enough to step in? Can it be that our voices as ordinary people truly go unheard? What is the reason behind this?”
Others analyzed the reasons why food safety issues cannot be completely resolved, stating, “If they truly wanted to solve it, it wouldn’t be difficult at all. The key is what? They simply don’t want to solve it. Because if there were no food safety issues today, you wouldn’t see such a spectacle of a street lined with over a dozen pharmacies. You wouldn’t see hospitals more crowded than malls. Pharmacies and hospitals would both face closures. Why? Because behind this is the massive buying force of 1.4 billion people, driven by vested interests, it is not something that can be completely resolved.”
According to reports by the party media on December 23, it was claimed that at the national market supervision work conference of the CCP, the overall situation of safety for the “Three Products and One Special” (food, drugs, key industrial products, and special equipment) was stable. “The evaluation of food safety in random inspections had a pass rate of 99.2%, and the pass rates for categories such as livestock and poultry, aquatic products, and vegetables have further improved. The pass rate for drug inspections remains above 99%. Our country’s pass rates for food and drug safety are both over 99%.”
At the national market supervision work conference, an official also claimed that China has the strongest food supervision in the world. In response, netizens created a video reciting the nursery rhyme “A Fart” as a form of critique.
In the comment section of Guangdong, a netizen remarked, “If you lower the standards to the minimum, of course, everything will pass.”
Renowned marketing expert and founder of Marketing Key, mobile marketing discipline pioneer Hua Hongbing stated, “One-third of China will suffer from cancer due to food safety issues by 2040,” in a widely circulated speech on the internet two months ago.
He revealed that the Lingnan Science Forum in 2024 disclosed a shocking message: “By 2040, the number of cancer patients in China will reach 400 million, when the population is estimated to be only 1.2 billion. That means one-third of the population will have cancer. Do you believe this prediction?”
He continued, “If you go to a supermarket today, there are fewer and fewer people, while hospitals are overcrowded. Why? Because bread is not selling, ready-to-eat food is not selling, beer, drinks, fruits, snacks, even plain steamed bread is not selling—all replaced by technology and deceit. Preservatives, additives, hormones, preservatives – we can’t defend against these.”
Addressing the issue of falling ill when eating and starving when not eating, he suggested, “We should really establish a blacklist for food; join hands to build a Great Wall of food safety. Anyone who counterfeits, sells fakes, or manufactures toxic food should be added to this blacklist. Once on the list, these individuals will have nowhere to stay, nothing to eat; they won’t be allowed on highways, to play mahjong, buy cars – let them be isolated forever from the world… Only then can we hope to prevent illness through the mouth.”
Scholar Li Hengqing from the Washington Institute of Information and Strategic Studies, USA, stated in an interview with The Epoch Times, “The issue of food safety in China has long been a well-known problem. Major incidents in the past have included the melamine found in infant formula.”
Based on Li Hengqing’s observations, he believes that food-related enterprises in China are becoming increasingly worrisome, stating, “Because overall economic consumption is declining, the business environment is very severe. In such a situation, these companies, whether in catering or food production, need to cut costs. At this point, companies no longer have any bottom line.”
Discussing the problem of pre-made meals, he said, “Not all pre-made meal companies are bad, but the reality remains that pre-made meals are produced to cut costs, as competition leads to the use of expired meat and vegetables instead of fresh ingredients. You might be eating meat that’s been stored for over a decade, and while it won’t kill you instantly, it is unsafe and unhealthy. Who is regulating these matters?”
Regarding the CCP’s recent announcement of a 99.2% pass rate in food safety inspections, Li Hengqing said, “That means only one-eight of the sample results. It is indeed something that Chinese people find hard to believe.”
He analyzed that the reason for the authorities releasing this data is that the CCP does not see the citizens as humans but as consumption machines. If people stop consuming or start making their own food, the society will face a crisis they cannot accept. Therefore, they find a way to tell the public that food is safe now, urging them to consume without worries.
In his view, the insularity of Chinese society has resulted in people becoming insular as well, as the whole society is sick. Consequently, no industry can stand alone. It is the responsibility of the government as they have been in power for over seventy years, and have failed to address these fundamental structural issues. From the central government to local levels, the structure has led to the current state of internal collapse and inherent factors contributing to food safety issues.
A rights lawyer from Henan province in mainland China, in an interview with The Epoch Times, said, “China’s food problem may be the worst in the world. There are too many banned substances, from small food stalls to large food factories. According to standards from abroad or developed democratic countries, most food here is likely inedible. Many food factories, including upstream breeding and cultivation industries, employ pesticides, additives, and various hormones beyond the legal limits. This is a well-known fact, including significant issues in the transportation of cooking oil. So, from various perspectives, Chinese food could be the worst in the world.”
He pointed out that hotels also follow the same practice of using pre-made dishes, either freezing them for extended periods or adding preservatives, resulting in nutritionless meals for consumers. Pre-made dishes have become a widespread phenomenon in the catering industry.
He argued that despite North Korea or some countries in Africa lagging behind with limited resources, compared to China, their food is relatively more secure. “Resources seem abundant in China, but there is an excessive use of additives and preservatives, making it highly unsafe. The proportion of these substances is alarmingly high,” he added.
He believes that any mentally sane person in China knows that the food is of poor quality, with harmful substances exceeding limits. In a society where air pollution and poor ethics prevail, nearly all industries struggle to maintain integrity. This degradation of morale and relentless pursuit of profit leads to a collapse in honesty and integrity across all sectors.