A restaurant in China that dared its customers to eat more than 100 gyozas in exchange for a free meal has run into trouble with authorities, who are investigating whether it violated the country’s anti-waste food law.
Local authorities in the city of Yibin in the country’s southwestern Sichuan province stormed the restaurant after hearing about its “big stomach king challenge”, state news agency The Cover reported this week.
The challenge supposedly involved customers competing to eat 108 chaoshous, or spicy wonton dumplings, as quickly as possible to win a free meal and other prizes.
To heighten public interest, the restaurant advertised the offer on social media to entice customers, only to find itself on the hot seat when the State Administration for Market Regulation said it would open an investigation into whether the food waste law had been violated.
Although food contests are relatively common in Western countries and can bring fame to their winners – like Joey Chestnut, who last week won Nathan’s International Hot Dog Eating Contest in Coney Island, USA, by devouring 62 hot dogs in 10 minutes – they can be a touchy subject in China.
Many in the country still remember the famine of the 1950s and 1960s that killed an estimated 45 million people.
The Cover said the restaurant, whose name was not revealed, is one of several being investigated by authorities in similar contests.
In the past, Chinese leader Xi Jinping has called food waste “shocking and distressing” and in March this year said agricultural supplies were like the foundation of national security.
The food-wasting law was enacted in 2021, following occasional government criticism of online bloggers who livestreamed themselves binge eating to attract viewers. Many of her accounts were later suspended by social media platforms.
Under the law, restaurateurs can be fined up to 10,000 yuan ($6,000) if their establishments “induce or mislead customers to order excessively to cause obvious waste.”
Radio and television stations, as well as online video and audio providers, face a maximum fine of 10 times that amount if found to be involved in “creating, publishing, promoting programs or audio messages about overeating and binge eating and alcohol.” .
The restaurant in Yibin “demonstrates binge eating and drinking behavior and induces customers to order excessively,” Cover said, citing the local market regulator.
However, some Chinese netizens criticized the authorities for overreacting.
“Is this considered a waste? Why not let people compete for the biggest eater? Does the food that is not eaten there really go to the poor?” wrote one user on Weibo, the Chinese version of Twitter.
Another user pointed to the country’s poor record on food safety, which has included scandals ranging from tainted baby formula to the use of “gutter oil” – recycled oil contaminated with food scraps or even sewage.
“You haven’t regulated food safety, but this?” said the user.
Source: CNN Brasil
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