Cooking oil contamination scandal sparks outrage in China

There is growing anger and disgust in China after it was revealed that Chinese companies have been using the same oil tankers to transport fuel and cooking oil, without cleaning the vessels in between.

The allegations were made in an exposé by The Beijing News which found it was an “open secret” in the transport industry that tankers were being used for dual purposes.

The investigation found several tankers were routinely transporting edible oils, such as cooking oils or syrup having also carried industrial waste, liquid coal, chemicals, and fuels without proper decontamination processes in place.

China’s largest grain storage and transport company Sinograin and a corporation called Hopefull Grain and Oil Group are both named in the report and have launched their own investigations into the alleged malpractice.

The scandal has been reported in state media, indicating there was no attempt by the government to censor the initial report.

There has been some censorship of discussions online, but it hasn’t stopped millions of people expressing their outrage and fear as the country faces another food scandal.

In recent decades China has been rocked by several food and drug scandals. One of the most shocking in 2008 involved the chemical contamination of baby formula which killed six infants and caused sickness in hundreds of thousands of others.

In 2011 a “gutter oil’’ scandal shocked the country and 32 people were arrested for selling tonnes of cooking oil which had been dredged from drains behind restaurants, and resold.

Those incidents caused a deep mistrust of domestic baby and food products - this latest scandal has resurfaced some of the same misgivings.

Many comments on the scandal have been deleted but there are still tens of thousands of posts, with millions of likes, where people have called for the companies and the drivers involved to be arrested and prosecuted.

Many have described it as “equal to poisoning” and people complained that China “has never had food safety’’.

In one post someone pointed out that China had raised an uproar about Japan’s release of wastewater from the Fukushima nuclear plant, when it turns out the country is “feeding chemicals to its own people all along”.

An investigative team has been set up by the Chinese government, promising that those responsible for any negligence “will be severely punished in accordance with the law’’.

In the case of the baby formula in 2008 several company executives were found responsible, and two men were given death sentences.

The revelations come at a politically sensitive time, with the Chinese government preparing to meet for its Third Plenum next week, when eagerly anticipated announcements are expected on what action will be taken to address the country’s economic downturn.

Since he came to power President Xi has stressed the importance of food safety and the security of food supplies.

In a speech following the "gutter oil" scandal he said: “If the ruling party cannot manage something as fundamental as food safety, and even allow it to persist without proper resolution over a long period, the party’s ability to govern will be challenged.”

There is no suggestion that this scandal will challenge President Xi’s position but given he has spoken on this matter so publicly and emphatically, he will have ordered the strictest of investigations, and comprehensive monitoring of public reaction.

China does have national standards in place which require edible oils to be transported in dedicated containers but there are no specific laws governing the practice.

According to Beijing News, companies have been foregoing the expensive deep cleaning processes and using tankers consecutively for fuel and cooking oils largely to cut costs and save time.

Despite the perception of Chinese state media, it is their investigative reporters who have uncovered several of the past food and drug safety scandals.

During the pandemic that area of journalism appeared to have been stifled, but this latest explosive report shows there are still outlets willing to probe and risk potential backlash.

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