China’s downward spiral in food fraud
by alicexwo
Fake chicken eggs scandal
From the 2008 powdered milk recall to the counterfeit egg scandal, China is no stranger to the business of food fraud. Recently, BBC News China documented the different media reactions to China’s food fiasco. People have substituted fox and mink meat that are being sold to hot pot restaurants in Shanghai, additionally, diseased pigs assumed to be slaughtered were resold by farmers. Fraud activity hasn’t just been food-related, in fact, phony dictionaries were being sold to young students.
Normally, we would rely on government authority to crack down on all these cases, but unfortunately, the Chinese government plays a role in supporting these scams. China has one of the fastest growing economies in the world, which surprises me with why they need to carry out these schemes. As a generalization, the majority of the country still lives below the poverty line and coupled with the government’s predominant role in the economy, people resort to extremes in order to find attainable and cheap resources to start their own businesses and develop a steady source of income. Ironically, although the government maintains so much control, minimal effort is made to ensure that the country’s citizens are protected against the false products that taint their markets.