The Chinese government is to investigate allegations that containers used to transport edible oil were not properly cleaned after previously carrying toxic chemicals.
Last week, the state-owned newspaper Beijing News revealed that edible oil had been transported in containers also used for transporting fuel, without being properly cleaned between transports. The revelations have sparked outrage in China and are seen as the latest scandal in a country where fear of food safety is widespread.
Many are now expressing concern on social media about potential contamination of food, according to state-owned Beijing News.
"From melamine to drinking gasoline, what haven't we experienced?", writes a user on the Chinese platform Weibo.
The transportation of edible oil in contaminated tank trucks was reportedly so widespread that it was considered an "open secret" in the industry, according to a driver, the newspaper writes.
Truck drivers tell the newspaper that the routine of inadequate cleaning contributed to reducing costs in the face of increasing competition.
China is now promising to take a tough stance on the issue and punish those responsible, according to state media.
China has previously been shaken by several food safety scandals.
In 2008, six infants died and hundreds of thousands of children were poisoned by milk adulterated with the chemical substance melamine.
In 2022, the Chinese pork giant Henan Shuanghui apologized after the company's unhygienic working methods, including packaging meat that had fallen on the floor and workers wearing dirty uniforms, were exposed.
