After the exposure of the chaotic situation of mixed chemical food oils in Chinese tanker trucks, the issue continues to ferment, with mainland media digging into the flow of problem oils to schools and grassroots people. Netizens have begun to question the privileged consumption of Communist Party officials, with an old article titled “Eating in Ministries and Organizations” gaining traction.
The destination of the “problem oils” in China has been gradually uncovered in recent days. According to reports from mainland media outlets such as Caixin, Jiemian News, Economic Observer, and Every Economic Net on the 10th of July, after the soybean oil loaded by China Grain Reserves Corporation into tanker trucks transporting coal-derived oil, it was transported to a grain and oil company in Mian County, Hanzhong City, Shaanxi Province – Mianxian Xinli Oil Co., Ltd. (referred to as “Mian County Xinli”).
Public bidding information shows that Mian County Xinli has won bids a total of 9 times in the past five years. In 2019, they won the bid for procurement by Shaanxi University of Technology, in July 2023, they won the bid for procurement by Hanzhong Vocational and Technical College, and in the same month, they also won the bid for procurement of edible oil for the difficult group’s living guarantee materials by Mian County Civil Affairs Bureau. According to the procurement announcement of Hanzhong Vocational and Technical College, Mian County Xinli was one of the three rapeseed oil suppliers shortlisted.
In a post on the official WeChat account of Huifu Grain and Oil, their scattered oil sales customers include Sanhe Yawang Food, Shanghai Puyao Agricultural Products, Shanghai Kaiye Grain and Oil, Beijing Century Yufu, Zhonghe Yufeng Grain and Oil, Tianjin Huake Technology, Baoding Honghai Grain and Oil, Fangshun Joint Grain and Oil, Shenyang Zhongcheng Supply Chain.
It is reported that in the procurement project of “difficult group population” for the New Year’s condolences in Yuquan District Civil Affairs Bureau of Hohhot City in 2024, the manufacturer of edible oil was Sanhe Yawang Food, with a high procurement quantity of 5000 barrels (5 liters per barrel), at a price of 69 yuan per barrel.
In a sampling list from Wuji County, Hebei Province in 2024, Sanhe Yawang Food also supplied edible oil to Zhangduangu Town Southwest Fengxue School; in the food procurement project of Beijing Education College, the edible oil also came from Sanhe Yawang Food.
Furthermore, Century Yufu among the customers of Huifu Grain and Oil, is an important supplier directly supplying 94 universities, secondary and primary schools, and kindergartens in Beijing. In June 2024, Century Yufu was the supplier in a bid announcement for the cafeteria food procurement of the University of International Business and Economics, with the purchase name listed as non-genetically modified soybean oil.
Among the suppliers of edible oils for cafeterias of more than ten universities such as Capital Normal University, Beijing University of Science and Technology, Beijing University of Technology, Central University of Finance and Economics, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing Foreign Studies University, North China University of Technology, Capital Medical University, there is the presence of Century Yufu.
However, some mainland media reports related to the flow of mixed edible oils had been deleted by July 11th, such as Phoenix Net’s “Tsinghua University and Peking University are no match for the oil giants: the largest customer of bulk edible oil transported by tanker trucks is schools.”
But they can still be found in some self-media and Weibo posts.
Earlier, on July 2nd, the New Beijing News reported that to reduce costs, some tanker trucks transporting edible oil did not clean the tanks when changing cargo and instead loaded coal-derived oils and other chemical liquids, risking contamination of the edible oils being transported, and the companies involved include Huifu Grain and Oil Group and China Grain Reserves Oil and Fats (Tianjin) Co., Ltd.
On July 9th, the State Council of the Communist Party of China stated that in response to reports from the media about the “chaotic issues of transporting edible oil by tanker trucks,” a joint investigation team would be established to “thoroughly investigate” the problems in the transportation of edible oil by tanker trucks.
Political commentator Li Lin told Epoch Times that the announcement of the investigation by the State Council of the Communist Party of China is just a hindsight move, as there was no regular supervision in the past, and now they are only taking action reactively. It seems that they will throw some central enterprise personnel and specific units under the bus as scapegoats.
The issue of mixed oils had been exposed by mainland media as early as 2005. Chinese Communist Party leader Xi Jinping’s statement in 2013 that “long-term failure in food safety is inexcusable for governance” stirred controversy. Overseas netizens pointed directly at the Chinese Communist Party, stating that it should have stepped down long ago.
Many netizens online questioned the lax supervision by officials due to “privileged consumption”: “The root of all toxic food lies in special privileges.”
An article titled “Eating in Ministries and Organizations” has been circulating widely on WeChat Moments.
The article excerpt wrote: “Look at this, and you will understand why it is so difficult to reform China’s political system.”
In the article, a regular staff member working for the Ministry of Agriculture (restructured into the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs in 2018) proudly described how she enjoys the “privileges” that all ministries offer at meal times every year.
“The ministry canteen has made great progress compared to more than ten years ago, no need to bring your own tableware, everything is disinfected, and the dishes are all organic. Last year, finding a fly in the canteen of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs almost became a major news event in canteens of various ministries in the capital.
“Having gotten used to the privileged meals, I can’t stand ‘sewer oil’ and melamine anymore.
“The variety of buffet dishes is not too many, only about a dozen cold dishes and dozens of hot dishes. The dining cost for external visitors is only 20 yuan, and the government officials from the Ministry of Agriculture almost do not need to spend any money here.”
The article stated, “In October last year, the Agricultural Bureau of Turpan Region and the Service Bureau of the Ministry of Agriculture signed an agreement to establish a special supply area for the Ministry of Agriculture in Turpan, planning 1000 greenhouses as a special production base for organic fruits and specialties for the Ministry of Agriculture canteen.”
“Only in special circumstances are harmless insecticides such as soapy water, alcohol, and pyrethrum allowed to be used. Toxic pesticides are strictly prohibited. Unlike the food consumed by ordinary people, which is soaked in highly toxic pesticides, not to mention the lethal chemicals sprayed during the growth period.”
The article mentioned that on a farm in Tunchang County, Hainan Province, the “Hainan Black Mountain Pig” raised by mountain people in small-scale free-range areas are fed with various wild vegetables and plant roots, supplemented with sweet potatoes, radishes, and other feed, absolutely free from “lean meat powder.” They are also kept on average for more than 3 months longer than regular pigs. In supermarkets, a pound of pork chops sells for more than 60 yuan.
Officials also have to enjoy the privileges with their families when they return home. Annilong Mountain Villa, located 70 kilometers from downtown Beijing, has 28 greenhouses, 600 acres of orchards, a 50-acre free-range chicken farm, a 2500-square-meter wild duck breeding lake, a 30,000-square-meter fish pond, which is a private farm of the General Administration of Quality Inspection. People often come here with leaders to pick vegetables.
Besides enjoying special privileges in various ministries of the central government, during the “two sessions,” the delegates and members attending also enjoy special privileges.
In 2012, Gao Hongbin, then Deputy Minister of the Chinese Communist Party’s Ministry of Agriculture, commented regarding a dairy company’s problem with the discovery of strong carcinogenic substance Aflatoxin M in pure milk: “You have eaten carcinogens. It’s measured in tons. It takes decades to cause cancer.” When referring to the issue of “lean meat powder,” Deputy Minister Gao stated, “It’s just a few instances, a few individual issues that arise in certain places, but have been blown up into a big issue across the whole society, making it seem like nothing is safe to eat.”
The article concluded by mentioning that many people are now calling for political system reform, and once it has really changed, it is uncertain whether these government canteens can be kept. Perhaps by that time, there will truly be no more “free lunches” in this world.
Epoch Times reporters found that this article’s basic content is derived from reports by the Chinese Communist Party’s official People’s Daily, which had been widely reposted around 2011 and is still being circulated by mainland media, with only slight variations in the titles.