The bad news? Of the 30 food products it deemed unacceptable, 13 are bottled water products that are especially hazardous to human health, Bendibao reports.

10 of these bottled water products (not the hand-size, but the kind Louis CK had thrown out of a window) exceed legally allowed limits for bacteria. An examination of Ganlong Water showed that it contained bacteria that is 3100 times over the legal limit. The food safety office warned that products like this one made by Guangzhou Yulong Spring Water Company contains micro-organisms that can result in intestinal disease.

But that’s just a drop in the ocean. The other main problem with these contaminated bottled water products is that they were not properly de-ionized. Ding Qiang Drinking Water, made by the Guangzhou Nanchun Food Company, was found to be three times over the legal limit for electrical conductivity at 32.2μS/cm.

Here are the thirteen offending products and the reason why you shouldn’t be putting it in your mouth:

1. Wulingshan (雾岭山): bacteria
2. Ganlong (甘龙): bacteria
3. Gaoshanzong (高山宗): bacteria
4. Linbowan (林波湾): bacteria
5. Liuxi Jiaxiangquan (流溪家乡泉): not
de-ionized
6. Qingsui (清穗): not de-ionized
7. Baodi (宝地): bacteria
8. Dinghua (鼎华): bacteria and not de-ionized
9. Dingqiang (鼎强): bacteria and not de-ionized
10. Anqier (安琪儿): bacteria
11. Keliyin (可立饮): bacteria
12. Yili (忆利): bacteria
13. Maidishan (麦地山): not de-ionized

The improper food products have been taken off store shelves and recalled, with legal action being taken against operators. And while we’re clearing the air, the other unsafe food products that aren’t water products were not mentioned in several news items about the report. It will come out in the wash, we’re sure.

To stem the tide of potential health hazards, a public safety reminder: bottled water must be used within one week of opening the seal of the bottle; after this period of time, water must be boiled to ensure it’s hygienic. As well, please don’t store water in direct sunlight.

Photo: Tianhe Net, Bendibao

Police were called to a remote, forested area located near Fuma Industrial park in Chigang, Dongguan, reported the Dongguan Times. There, police found an unlicensed abattoir that was slaughtering water buffalo cattle in less than hygienic conditions: Two dead cattle lying on the floor were surrounded by buzzing flies; cut meat was left uncovered in plastic boxes piled on the floor; and discarded water buffalo hides and offal were scattered everywhere.

Worst of all, the workers at the factory were in the process of injecting the slaughtered cattle with water at the time police arrived. In a process that can increase the mass of the beef by 15-20%, workers attach hoses to an artery in the neck of the slaughtered cow; then, they pump the cow with water, industrial pigments, and preservatives so that the beef will become heavier, look better, and have a longer shelf life. This process includes completely immersing the beef in water, and can sometimes be repeated up to 5 times.

The suspects escaped when police shouted their presence to the workers inside the compound. In all, approximately 1500 kg of beef was confiscated by officials and destroyed. The meat was to be sold in markets in the vicinity including those in Humen, Chang’an, and Shenzhen.

How can you tell the beef at your local market has been tampered with? Here are 6 telltale signs:

1. Beef injected with water will continually seep out water. Sellers of this meat will use rags to mop up the excess moisture.
2. Beef injected with water will display an especially red color. It will eventually come to lose its color; this fake beef looks shiny and has a glossy exterior. On the other hand, beef that has not been injected with water is a dark red and is prone to wrinkling.
3. Beef injected with water is not elastic to the touch. It isn’t flexible, and will release water when squeezed. On the other hand, beef not injected with water is flexible and sticky to the touch.
4. Blood veins are very distinct in beef injected with water, while they are not in real beef. The former has a limp color with a glossy sheen.
5. You can perform a test using toilet paper. Beef injected with water will soak through toilet paper in 5 seconds, while proper regulation beef will only show a little spotting.
6. When thawing out frozen beef injected with water, water collected in the plate will show a dark red color.

We can only hope that “beef injections” remain a wholesome practice that is served only for righteous purposes.

Photo: Time DG

A restaurant located in Foshan’s Nanhai district was found to have been adding an illegal poppy opiate to their stewed meat dishes since December 2011 in order to make them “tastier”, Yangcheng Evening News reported on April 13.

The restaurant’s unscrupulous act was exposed in late February this year when 10 men from a KTV club were tested positive for morphine in a police check. The initial suspicion was drugs, but one person surnamed Cao insisted he and his friends didn’t use drugs and suspected the dishes they had earlier that evening.

Taking the hint, the police raided the restaurant in question the following day. A thorough check of the kitchen led to the discovery of a brown-colored bottle containing opium, morphine, poppy pods and other illegal additives. According to the report, the “spice” was regularly given to the chef by the restaurant owner. Each day, the special spice was used around 10 times, mainly in stewed duck and goose. Within half a month, a bottle of approximately 100 grams could be consumed, the report said.

On April 11, the restaurant owner and the chef were arrested for using the illegal additives and endangering customers’ health.

Poppy seeds are not uncommon in Guangdong or throughout parts of China. It was traditionally used in dishes until recently banned. In Chongqing, it has been routinely used in hotpot dishes. Some mala tang (麻辣烫) and marinated foods also use poppy seedpods for extra flavors.

Home page image: hsw.cn

Now, you can. The Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) released a statement on April 8 that they will be looking to start a trial system of providing licenses to street peddlers and hawkers, China News reports. This move is seen as timely since Guangzhou has recently been promoting its car-free pedestrian zone that is well-populated with peddlers trying to sell you things you did not know you need to buy.

However, the term “licensed” does not necessarily refer to adhering to health regulations. The big news for these peddlers and hawkers is that they will be “safe” from the harassment of the chengguan, the practical administration of city bylaws that has all of the bullying from an authoritative force, but none of the responsibility. Basically, it’s the Miller Lite of police brutality.

Certification with a license would mean that local chengguan would recognize the legitimacy of the peddler’s business rather than try to forcibly remove them from the area. Chengguan have a bad reputation in China for using physical force to intimidate hawkers and street peddlers. Just today, news reports tell of a 70 year-old man who died during a confrontation with chengguan in Mawei, Fuzhou when he tried to mediate a compromise.

CPPCC representative Yang Ke sympathized with the plight of peddlers, and acknowledged that peddlers don’t see themselves as committing criminal acts that require the chengguan to police, but are rather just trying to make a living. Yang proposed a system similar to that of Manhattan, New York where streets are cordoned off on weekends to allow for street markets populated by many street peddlers, but with nary a chengguan in sight.

Roadside gourmands will be able to take their time, savor their food, and eat their street meat, “safe” from any chengguan interruptions.

Photo: China News

A total of nine people have been arrested in food safety crackdowns by the Shenzhen Food Safety Department last year. Most of the convictions stemmed from the sale of counterfeit name brand baijiu, drinking water, and beer, but three cases involved the sale of food contaminated with hazardous chemicals.

The most recent food safety “blacklist” details some of the food Shenzhen residents may have been eating this past year, SZ News reported.

Grass fish, Mandarin fish, Yellow fish – six fish out of a sample of eleven were found to contain malachite green, a controversial aquaculture agent that controls bacteria and fungi. It can be safely used for fish in aquariums, but not recommended for consumable fish as it poses a health risk to humans. Banned in the USA, UK, and Canada, this agent also known as “China green” is commonly used as a dye.

Four seafood sellers at Luofang Seafood Wholesale Market were found guilty of using malachite green during a September 25, 2013 inspection and given sentences of six to ten months in jail and given fines up to RMB 10,000.

Fried rice noodles – excessive amounts of sodium borate or Borax were found in noodles sold by a food seller in Longgang District. Because of its effectiveness against yeast, Borax is often used as a food preservative but is mostly used in China to add a firm rubbery texture to noodles. Is banned in the USA, Canada, New Zealand and Australia.

Fan Chuhao, owner of the Chuhaoji Beef Store, failed a food inspection on March 25, 2013 and convicted. Fan was sentenced to six months in jail and fined RMB 3,000.

Marinated meat – high levels of hydrogen peroxide were found in marinated meat at a food processing workshop in Longgang’s Henggang Subdistrict. Hydrogen peroxide can be used as a bleaching agent for shark fin, but is used in meat preparation because it kills bacteria and helps tenderize the meat.

Xue Chonglan failed a March 15 inspection and was convicted. Xue was sentenced seven months in jail and fined 4,000 yuan.

Shenzhen first established a food safety “black list” on September 1, 2013. If guilty, persons named to this list are not allowed to work in the food industry for five years. This recent list is the third one to be published so far.

Photo: hbshuichan

The latest is Taiwanese bubble tea. It turns out the chewy little pearls in the bubble tea in Shenzhen have excessive additives.

The Shenzhen Daily reports:

The city checked 14 batches of the chewy tapioca balls across the city, and six of the batches had additive problems, said Chen Jianming, the administration’s vice head.

Four of the six faulty batches were found to contain phenylformic acid, sorbic acid and saccharin sodium, which are not allowed to be added into drinks. Two batches were found to contain excessive amounts of methylacetopyranone.

Sounds delicious, doesn’t it?

We should probably do a brief recap of what you can’t eat in the PRD:

• Food at certain Guangzhou restaurants (addictive poppy powder added)
• Mooncakes (plasticiser added)
• Bamboo shoots in Dongguan (washed in the toilet)
• Beans in Guangzhou (tainted with illegal pesticide)
• Chicken wings in Guangzhou (fake)

Bon appétit.

Want China Times reported:

The irregularity was first uncovered by the Guangzhou Food and Drug Administration in June last year. During a spot check of 70 of the city’s restaurants, inspection officials found that two of the restaurants were using the addictive poppy powder in marinade bags.

The kitchen staff at the two restaurants initially told inspection officials that they had no idea what was in the bags, and claimed that were delivered in that way by suppliers. However, they later reneged and admitted that the bags contained poppy powder.

Both restaurants were fined RMB50,000.

Despite the highly addictive nature of poppy powder, consuming it may be among the least bad things you might eat at Guangzhou restaurants.

(h/t Shanghaiist)

Today, it was reported that unsafe amounts of plasticiser were discovered in eight brands of moon cakes in Guangzhou.

Shanghaiist has more:

The plasticizer is found in the PVC used to make the cake wrap, and can emit harmful chemicals if the moon cakes are too hot when packaged. If ingested, these chemicals can allegedly decrease sperm count in men, but also, ironically enough, accelerate sexual maturity in kids (who knew all Benjamin Button needed to do to fix his problem was stop eating Guangzhou moon cakes).

Excessive amounts of the same plasticiser have in the past been found in instant noodles, soy sauce, baijiu, bubble tea and more.

In spite of the safety scandals that seem to emerge every year, there is growing demand in overseas markets for Guangdong moon cakes.

China Daily reported last week that twenty-eight mooncake exporters in Guangdong have shipped 970 batches, an annual rise of 30 percent. This accounted for 1,484 tons of mooncakes, a 15 percent year-on-year rise.

Guangdong mooncakes account for nearly 80 percent of national mooncake exports this year, in spite of a decline in domestic demand.

Since 2011, 91 people have been tried in 31 different trials. Twenty-two of the cases involved the selling or production of substandard food products, the rest involved the production or sale of dangerous or harmful food.

Most of the cases involved criminal gangs who systematically broke the law for a period of months or even years.

One of the most revolting food safety scandals of recent times in Dongguan was that of the merchant who processed bamboo shoots in the toilet.

Pesticide being applied to yardlong beans courtesy of Baidu images

Wu Hemin, assistant manager of the market said they habitually conduct such tests and dispose of unsafe food.

All of the tainted beans came from Sanya in Hainan Province. Yardlong beans are often used in stirfries and in salads.

Food safety scandals are never far from the news in this part of the world.

When blogger and translator Charles Custer left China last year, he cited food safety as one of the reasons why he was reluctant to choose China as the place to start a family. This sparked much discussion, including this extraordinary rant.