10 Fake Foods Being Imported From China That You Didn’t Know

A lot of people have been avoiding imported goods from China, and we all know why. 

Though way back in ancient times, Chinese people have been great inventors, from paper-making to gunpowder, their inventive minds have greatly contributed to the development of civilization.

Unfortunately, nowadays, their ingenuity has been used for all the wrong reasons. China is now infamous for creating counterfeit and extremely toxic products being sold worldwide. You can even find them being sold on commercial websites such as Amazon and eBay. Some vendors are discreet in selling these Chinese products, while some openly states that the products are shipped straight from China.

Below are ten examples of counterfeit and highly toxic goods from China. 

1. Imitation Eggs

There are Chinese websites that provide tutorial videos on how to produce fake eggs. According to them, you can make as much as $70 a day by selling these fake eggs. The chemicals needed to create one are alginic acid, potassium alum, gelatin, calcium chloride, water, and artificial color. The eggshells are made from calcium carbonate. Consuming these chemical-filled eggs may cause memory loss and dementia.

2. Concrete-filled Walnuts

In 2012, a man in Zhengzhou City, China bought shelled walnuts only to find broken concrete pieces inside it. The concrete piece was wrapped in paper to avoid suspicious sound when the nut is shaken. By selling these fake nuts which are heavier than the real thing, the vendor can gain more profit.

3. Bogus Beef

Since pork is less expensive than beef, some restaurants in China use them instead. They soak the meat in beef extract and glazing agent for 90 minutes to produce the fake beef. Doctors have warned people that consuming this fake beef can cause poisoning, deformity, and even cancer.

4. Fake Green Peas

In 2005, fake green peas made with snow peas and soybeans added with green dye and sodium metabisulfite (used as bleach and preservative), were found being sold in Hunan Province, China. The chemicals used in the product were forbidden because they may cause cancer and obstruct the body's ability to absorb calcium. According to the reports, the fake peas were still hard after boiling and turned the water into an unusual green color.

5. Toxic Baby Formula

Disregard to life is almost typical to Chinese people as long as they will earn big profit. In 2004, dozens of children were dying because of fake instant baby formula sold in China. The fake formula mostly contained chalk with little to no nutrients at all. According to the reports, children who consumed the formula developed a "big head disease." Their heads swell while the rest of their bodies slowly deteriorate.

6. Fake Table Salt

Industrial salt is not fit for human consumption. But because it is cheaper than real table salt, more than 700 tons of industrial salt was sold as table salt for almost 13 years. Consuming industrial salt may cause mental and physical issues, such as hypothyroid problems and reproductive system disorders.

7. Fake Black and White Peppers

A market vendor in Guandong Province, China sold mud as black pepper, and flour as white pepper. The vendor justified his actions by saying that those fake items "won't kill people."

In China, fake goods don't get investigated until someone dies, which means that fake and toxic items continue to be sold to people until someone get killed by it.

8. Fake Sweet Potato Noodles

In 2011, people complained that they supposed to be sweet potato noodles tasted strange. Further investigations revealed that the noodles were made of corn with industrial ink to give its purple color, and paraffin wax. The fake noodles were produced in a facility in Zhongshan City, China.

9. Fake Ginseng Roots

Ginseng root is a popular medicinal plant in China. When prices for ginseng rapidly increased, retailers thought of a way to keep making a profit. They started boiling the roots in sugar to make them heavier and more profitable.

Chinese medicine expert Wei Feing said that this might cause problems. The costumers are getting ripped off and the boiled ginseng had lost most of its medicinal values. Tests showed that natural ginseng has 20% sugar content, while the counterfeit has up to 70% sugar.

Wei Feing said: "It can do little to improve people’s health."

10. Plastic Rice

A large amount of fake rice has been confiscated in China. It is believed that these fake rice were made of potatoes combined with synthetic resin. Just like the fake peas, the fake rice stayed hard after boiling and its long-term consumption can cause cancer.

So from now on, think twice before you purchase anything made in China.

Written by Kristine Ang, Lucis Philippines contributor.