A wave of shock and anger has swept across China following several incidents in which human teeth were allegedly discovered in food products, sparking renewed scrutiny of the country’s food safety standards.
According to the South China Morning Post, the first reported incident occurred on October 13 in Jilin province, where a woman claimed to have found three false teeth in sausages purchased from a local stall for her child. The seller initially denied the accusation, but later issued an apology after intervention from local market regulators.
Shortly afterwards, another case emerged in Dongguan, Guangdong Province, where a woman alleged that her father discovered two human teeth in dim sum served at a well-known restaurant. The restaurant maintained that all its food items were prepared with care at a central facility, calling the presence of the teeth a mystery. Authorities have since launched an investigation.
In a separate incident in Shanghai, a consumer reported finding a false tooth in a walnut cake bought from a Sam’s Club store. Staff expressed disbelief, saying such contamination was not possible in factory-produced goods.
The woman involved in the Shanghai case claimed the store offered her compensation of 1,000 yuan but refused permission for her to photograph the receipt. She declined the offer.
The Market Supervision Department in Pudong New District, Shanghai, has opened an investigation into the matter.
Under China’s food safety law, if a company sells substandard or harmful food, it is required to compensate the affected consumer with up to three times the value of the product.
